openings in the seawall itself, poses a serious entrapment threat 

 for monk seals and endangered sea turtles. 



The future of the Tern Island field station was discussed 

 with representatives of the Fish and Wildlife Service at the 

 Commission's Annual Meeting in Monterey, California, on 23-25 

 February 1989. During the meeting, the Service advised the 

 Commission that the seawall had deteriorated to the point where a 

 major storm could destroy the integrity of the runway on which 

 the field station relied and that it planned to initiate an 

 independent assessment of its long-term options regarding future 

 operations and maintenance of the field station. 



The assessment was undertaken in the summer of 1989. During 

 the review, the Commission, as well as other agencies and groups 

 familiar with the Tern Island field station, were asked to 

 provide relevant information and views. The Commission did so 

 and, in September 1989, the Service's report ("Evaluation of U.S. 

 Fish and Wildlife Service Operations on Tern Island in the 

 Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge: Recommendations for a 

 Long-Term Course of Action") was completed. The report recom- 

 mended repairing or replacing the seawall as soon as possible in 

 order to continue the present level of operations for an 

 additional 10 to 20 years. At the end of 1989, it was the 

 Commission's understanding that the assessment of options and 

 recommendations in the Report were being reviewed by the Service 

 to determine the most appropriate course of action to follow. 



Hawaiian Monk Seal Program Oversight and Direction 



While there is clear evidence of progress in the Hawaiian 

 monk seal recovery program (e.g. , the success of the Head Start 

 Program on Kure, efforts to clear beaches of marine debris and 

 free entangled seals, and the collection of data needed to 

 monitor population trends) , it also has been apparent that the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service has not provided the program 

 with a level of support commensurate with the species' critically 

 endangered status. Progress has instead relied upon the good 

 will of Congress, and the generous, but unpredictable, 

 contributions of other agencies, organizations, and committed 

 volunteers. 



To ensure that the recovery program addresses priority 

 recovery activities and essential support needs, the Commission 

 has recommended on several occasions since 1986 that the National 

 Marine Fisheries Service convene a Recovery Team and update the 

 Hawaiian Monk Seal Recovery Plan. As noted above, however, no 

 Recovery Team meetings were held between 1984 and 1988. There- 

 fore, at its Annual Meeting on 23-25 February 1989 in Monterey, 

 California, the Commission again raised the need for convening 

 the Recovery Team and updating the Recovery Plan. In response, 

 representatives of the Service participating in the meeting 



33 



