levels. To permit time for the stocks to recover and to review its management practices, 

 the International Whaling Commission initiated a worldwide moratorium on commercial 

 whaling that went into effect in 1986. Several countries are now advocating an end to 

 the moratorium and the resumption of commercial whaling. On 5 December 1991, the 

 Marine Mammal Commission, in consultation with its Committee of Scientific Advisors, 

 sent a comprehensive review of issues related to commercial whaling and operation of 

 the International Whaling Commission to the U.S. Commissioner to the International 

 Whaling Commission. The Marine Mammal Commission noted, among other things, 

 that both the 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling and the 

 International Whaling Commission's conservation program were in need of fundamental 

 revision and concluded that the United States should initiate efforts to update both. 



At present, the incidental take of marine mammals in commercial fisheries, 

 particularly high seas driftnet fisheries, poses a greater threat to many marine mammals 

 than does commercial exploitation. As noted in previous Annual Reports, the 

 Commission has advocated banning large-scale high seas driftnet fisheries. In 1991, the 

 Commission continued to work with the Departments of State and Commerce to seek an 

 international ban on these fisheries. Largely thanks to efforts by the Department of 

 State, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a consensus resolution in December 

 1991 that calls for a 50 percent reduction in large-scale high seas driftnet fishing effort 

 by 30 June 1992 and a global moratorium on all such fishing to begin on 31 December 

 1992. 



Another subject discussed in Chapter IV is the Commission's continued work with 

 the Department of State and other Federal agencies to develop and implement 

 international agreements for conserving whales, seals, and their habitats in Antarctica. 

 An action of particular significance in this regard was the conclusion of the Antarctic 

 Treaty Protocol on Environmental Protection on 4 October 1991. At present, the issue 

 of greatest concern to the Commission continues to be the potential for unregulated 

 growth of the Antarctic krill fishery. 



Many of the issues of concern in the Southern Ocean have parallels in the North 

 Pacific Ocean. To provide a mechanism for cooperatively identifying and assessing key 

 research issues in the North Pacific, the Governments of Canada, Japan, the People's 

 Republic of China, the Soviet Union, and the United States concluded the Convention for 

 a North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) in December 1990. In 1991, the 

 Commission provided partial support for and participated in a workshop to initiate 

 discussions on four key topic areas: climate change, the Bering Sea, environmental 

 quality, and fisheries oceanography. The workshop report, expected to be completed 

 early in 1992, will be provided to the member states to assist in preparing for the first 

 meeting of the Organization. 



vm 



