MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1995 



exemption. These similarities include classification of 

 fisheries according to the frequency with which 

 marine mammals are taken, registration requirements 

 for fishermen participating in fisheries that frequently 

 or occasionally take marine mammals, monitoring and 

 reporting requirements, and the goal of reducing 

 incidental mortality and serious injury of marine 

 mammals to insignificant levels approaching zero. 



The most significant difference between the interim 

 exemption and the new regime is the greater focus 

 now placed on those stocks most affected by commer- 

 cial fisheries. As discussed above, the National 

 Marine Fisheries Service and the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service, through preparation of stock assessments, 

 have identified strategic stocks of marine mammals. 

 A take reduction plan is to be developed for each 

 strategic stock that sustains frequent or occasional 

 mortality or serious injury due to fishing operations. 

 Take reduction plans, among other things, are to 

 include recommended regulatory or voluntary mea- 

 sures to reduce incidental mortality and serious injury 

 and to recommend dates for achieving specific objec- 

 tives. The immediate goal of these plans is to reduce, 

 within six months, incidental mortality and serious 

 injury to levels less than the potential biological 

 removal level calculated in the stock assessment. The 

 long-term goal of the plans is to reduce incidental 

 mortality and serious injury to insignificant levels 

 approaching a zero rate within five years, taking into 

 account the economics of the fishery, existing technol- 

 ogy, and applicable state or regional fishery manage- 

 ment plans. 



Another difference between the interim exemption 

 and the new fisheries regime is in the treatment of 

 species listed as endangered or threatened under the 

 Endangered Species Act. Under the interim exemp- 

 tion, there was no mechanism to authorize the inci- 

 dental take of listed species. The 1994 amendments 

 added section 101(a)(5)(E) to the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act to allow incidental taking of listed 

 species under certain circumstances. Before issuing 

 an authorization under this provision, the Service must 

 determine, after notice and opportunity for public 

 comment, that (1) the incidental mortality and serious 

 injury from commercial fisheries will have a negligi- 

 ble impact on the species or stock, (2) a recovery plan 

 has been, or is being, developed, and (3) where 



required under section 1 18, a monitoring program has 

 been established, the vessels are registered, and a take 

 reduction plan has been or is being developed. No 

 taking of California sea otters may be authorized 

 under the new provision. Such takings are subject to 

 the requirements of public Law 99-625. 



Proposed Implementing Regulations — On 16 



June 1995 the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 published proposed regulations to implement the new 

 incidental-take regime. Among other things, the 

 proposal sets forth procedures for vessel owners to 

 register for an authorization certificate, observer and 

 reporting requirements, and proposed criteria for 

 classifying fisheries. Along with these proposed 

 regulations, the Service published proposed changes to 

 the list of fisheries, which classifies each commercial 

 fishery into one of three categories depending on the 

 level of incidental take. 



The Marine Mammal Commission commented of 

 the proposed regulations on 15 August 1995. The 

 Commission noted that several provisions of section 

 1 18, such as the registration requirement, vary among 

 fisheries depending upon the frequency with which 

 marine mammals are killed or seriously injured. 

 Thus, a key issue is how the Service classifies fisher- 

 ies under the new regime. The Service proposed a 

 two-tiered system that looks at total fishery-related 

 impacts to each affected marine mammal stock and 

 then at the impacts of each fishery on the stock. If 

 annual mortality and serious injury of an affected 

 stock from all fisheries combined is less than 10 

 percent of the calculated potential biological removal 

 level or if the number of mortalities or serious injuries 

 resulting from a specific fishery is equal to or less 

 than one percent of the potential biological removal 

 level, the fishery would be placed in category III. A 

 category II fishery would be one that annually takes 

 between 1 and 50 percent of a stock's potential 

 biological removal level and for which the total annual 

 mortality and serious injury level from commercial 

 fisheries exceeds 10 percent of a stock's potential 

 biological removal level. A category I fishery would 

 be one that, by itself, is responsible for the annual 

 mortality or serious injury of 50 percent or more of a 

 stock's potential biological removal level. 



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