Chapter XII — Marine Mammals in Captivity 



facilities be full spectrum; a requirement that enclo- 

 sures subject to tidal action meet minimum space 

 requirements at low tide; a general increase in space 

 requirements; a training requirement for new employ- 

 ees; and a requirement that captive animals be given 

 access to conspecific or related, compatible animals. 



Points raised in the Commission's discussion paper 

 that were not addressed in the proposed regulations 

 include prohibiting release of animals from captivity 

 unless the facility is specifically authorized to do so; 

 prohibiting withholding of food for training purposes; 

 requiring necropsy reports to be maintained for a 

 period of five years; that transport enclosures clearly 

 be marked as containing live animals; that adequate 

 lighting be available to enable attendants to inspect 

 marine mammals being transported; and that carriers 

 inform the crew of the transport craft as to the pres- 

 ence of the marine mammals and take necessary 

 actions for the welfare of the animals if delays occur. 



A second meeting of the negotiated rulemaking 

 advisory committee is scheduled for 1-3 April 1996. 

 Due to funding constraints, this is to be the final 

 meeting of the committee. By compressing the 

 negotiated rulemaking process into two meetings, the 

 ability of the advisory committee to reach consensus 

 on all outstanding issues may have been compromised. 



Foreign Facilities 



Section 102(a)(4) of the Marine Mammal Protec- 

 tion Act as amended in 1994 prohibits the export of 

 marine mammals except for purposes of public 

 display, scientific research, or species enhancement. 

 Foreign facilities are allowed to export marine mam- 

 mals from U.S. facilities as long as they meet require- 

 ments pertaining to education or conservation pro- 

 grams, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 

 licensure, and public accessibility, or comparable 

 requirements. Because foreign facilities are not 

 subject to licensing or registration requirements under 

 the Animal Welfare Act, it is only through the Marine 

 Mammal Protection Act's comparability requirement 

 that adequate care of marine mammals transferred 

 from the United States to foreign facilities can be 

 assured. How best to determine and enforce compara- 



bility with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

 Service licensing requirements is an issue still being 

 reviewed by the responsible agencies. 



By letter of 26 August 1994 the Animal and Plant 

 Health Inspection Service requested the Commission's 

 comments on a document outlining the information to 

 be submitted by a foreign facility to enable the Service 

 to determine that comparable standards have been 

 met. By letter of 8 September 1994 the Commission 

 provided its views on the determinations that must be 

 made before marine mammals can be exported to 

 foreign facilities. The Commission noted that marine 

 mammals may only be exported to foreign facilities 

 that meet requirements comparable to those applicable 

 to U.S. facilities. The Commission concluded that 

 such determinations can only reliably be made by 

 conducting an inspection of the foreign facility. 



In 1995 the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 requested the Commission's comments on four appli- 

 cations from foreign facilities requesting authorization 

 to export from the United States unreleasable stranded 

 marine mammals for purposes of public display. The 

 Commission wrote to the Service on 26 May 1995 to 

 state that it continued to believe that an on-site inspec- 

 tion, conducted by a qualified individual (e.g., an 

 Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service inspector 

 familiar with marine mammals), is the only reliable 

 way to ensure that a facility meets comparable stan- 

 dards. The Commission noted that, while the Animal 

 and Plant Health Inspection Service does not have 

 authority under the Animal Welfare Act to compel a 

 foreign facility to consent to an inspection, it is within 

 the authority of the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 to require a foreign facility to submit to such an 

 inspection as a condition of obtaining animals under 

 the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Thus, for a 

 facility wishing to obtain marine mammals from the 

 United States, inspection could be made mandatory. 

 The Commission further noted that it would not be 

 difficult to imagine circumstances in which an animal 

 would be better off being euthanized than being 

 transferred to an unacceptable foreign facility. 



207 



