tuna-porpoise regulations. The purpose of the proposed 

 amendments was to provide greater flexibility in the appli- 

 cation of porpoise-saving gear and techniques by either 

 amending or deleting requirements found to be unnecessary or 

 unworkable. The Service's proposal and the Commission's 

 recommendations on this issue are described in the previous 

 Annual Report. 



Final regulations implementing the modifications to the 

 gear and technique requirements were published in the Federal 

 Register on 3 January 1986. In addition to making the pro- 

 posed changes, the Service published a brochure that set 

 forth guidelines on gear and fishing practices that could be 

 used to reduce incidental take levels. As recommended by the 

 Commission in its 7 November 1985 comment letter on the draft 

 guidelines, the brochure emphasized the importance of the 

 observer program and emphasized the goal of the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act that the incidental mortality of porpoise 

 should be reduced to insignificant levels approaching zero. 

 The guidelines were distributed to U.S. fishermen involved in 

 the tuna purse seine fishery and other interested parties. 



Research Activities and Research Planning 



As noted in the Commission's previous Annual Report, the 

 focus of research on porpoise stocks impacted by the yellow- 

 fin tuna purse seine fishery has changed from assessing the 

 stocks to monitoring indices of abundance in an attempt to 

 detect population trends. This focus on monitoring was 

 mandated by the 1984 amendments to the Marine Mammal Protec- 

 tion Act. Among other things, the amendment required that a 

 monitoring program commence by 1 January 1985 and continue 

 for at least five consecutive years. 



During 1984, the Commission and the Service held a 

 series of meetings to plan the monitoring program. Unfortu- 

 nately, funding and logistic constraints prevented the start 

 of the planned research vessel surveys in 1985. In July 

 1986, the survey program was initiated in accordance with the 

 1985 plan, with one major exception. The recommended survey 

 plan called for annual surveys using two vessels and one 

 helicopter for 120 days each year. Although the vessel 

 surveys were carried out between July and early December 

 1986, the Service was unable to deploy a helicopter. With 

 regard to the survey design, the Commission advised the 

 Service by letter of 23 December 1986 that it should re- 

 evaluate the anticipated effectiveness of the planned moni- 

 toring programs relative to the original goal of detecting 

 possible trends in porpoise abundance. The Commission looks 

 forward to receiving the results of these surveys for which 

 only preliminary results are now available. The Commission 

 will assist the Service in determining which methods of 

 analysis will maximize the value of the data obtained. 



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