MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1995 



the IWC's program. He also advised the President 

 that, during discussions with Japanese officials, U.S. 

 officials had been assured that Japan had no further 

 plans to increase the sampling effort during the eight 

 years remaining in its 16-year research program. 



In cases where foreign nations are so certified and 

 show no progress towards addressing the offending 

 action, the President may direct that a ban be placed 

 on the import of all or some fishery products from the 

 offending nation. In this regard, the President is 

 required to report to Congress within 60 days of any 

 action that is taken regarding the certification. As of 

 the end of 1995, the President had not yet submitted 

 his report to Congress and no steps had been taken 

 implement sanctions against Japan. 



Minke whale assessment — Norway carried out a 

 sighting survey in the North Atlantic Ocean from 15 

 July to 7 August 1995 to obtain better data on the 

 distribution, density, and sighting patterns of minke 

 whales in the area where it has authorized resumption 

 of commercial whaling. A U.S. scientist participated 

 in the cruise. A workshop is to be held in Oslo in 

 mid-January 1996 to determine whether available data 

 are sufficient to generate an acceptable estimate of 

 minke whale abundance in the North Atlantic. 



Conservation and Protection of 



Marine Mammals 



in the Southern Ocean 



More than a dozen of species of seals, whales, 

 dolphins, and porpoises inhabit or occur seasonally in 

 the Southern Ocean, the seas surrounding Antarctica. 

 Regional populations of humpback, blue, fin, sei, and 

 sperm whales were severely depleted and, in some 

 cases, brought to the verge of extinction by commer- 

 cial hunting. The blue whale population in the 

 Antarctic, for example, is estimated to have been 

 reduced from more than 150,000 to fewer than 1,000 

 individuals. Two of the six resident seal species also 

 were severely depleted by commercial hunting. 



There has been no commercial sealing in the 

 Antarctic since the 1950s. Concerned that depletion 

 of harp seal stocks in the North Atlantic in the 1960s 



would lead to a resumption of sealing, the Antarctic 

 Treaty Consultative Parties negotiated the Convention 

 for the Conservation for Antarctic Seals. This Con- 

 vention, which entered into force in 1977, provides a 

 mechanism for regulating commercial sealing in the 

 Antarctic, should it ever be resumed. 



As noted earlier in this chapter, the International 

 Whaling Commission established a moratorium on 

 commercial whaling, beginning in 1986. Also as 

 noted, in 1994 the International Whaling Commission 

 designated much of the Southern Ocean as a whale 

 sanctuary. Further, when it enters into force, the 

 Antarctic Treaty Protocol on Environmental Protec- 

 tion, discussed below, will prohibit oil and gas 

 development and other mineral resource activities in 

 Antarctica for at least 50 years. Consequently, 

 commercial sealing, commercial whaling, and mineral 

 exploration and development do not currently pose 

 threats to populations of seals and cetaceans in the 

 Southern Ocean. However, it is possible that com- 

 mercial sealing and whaling could be resumed and 

 that mineral exploration and development could be 

 permitted in the future. If not regulated effectively, 

 such activities could adversely affect Southern Ocean 

 populations of seals and cetaceans. Also, expansion 

 of fisheries, particularly the fishery for Antarctic krill 

 (Euphasia superba), could adversely affect seals, 

 whales, and other species dependent on the fish and 

 krill as their primary food source. In some areas, 

 increasing numbers of tourists and construction and 

 operation of scientific stations may also pose threats. 



The Marine Mammal Commission conducts a 

 continuing review of fisheries and other activities in 

 the Antarctic that could affect marine mammals 

 directly or indirectly. It has made numerous recom- 

 mendations to the Department of State, the National 

 Science Foundation, and the National Oceanic and 

 Atmospheric Administration's National Marine 

 Fisheries Service on the need for research and interna- 

 tional agreements to effectively regulate sealing, 

 whaling, fisheries, mineral development, and other 

 activities that could directly or indirectly affect marine 

 mammals in the Southern Ocean. 



Commission representatives participate in inter- 

 agency meetings to develop U.S. policies regarding 

 activities in Antarctica and the surrounding seas. 



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