On 2 December, the Alaska Federation of Natives petitioned 

 the Court of Appeals for leave to file an amicus curiae brief and 

 to participate in oral argument. In its brief, the Federation 

 asserts not only that the statutory provision and the Service's 

 regulations should be declared void for vagueness, but also that 

 the regulations prohibiting Natives from taking marine mammals in 

 a manner "which results in the waste of a substantial portion" of 

 the animal is an impermissible interpretation of Congressional 

 intent. 



The Government's reply brief is due in February 1990. 



National Society for Animal Protection v. Turner — In 

 addition, a lawsuit involving marine mammals in Alaska arose in 

 1989. On 13 November 1989, a complaint was filed in the District 

 Court for the District of Columbia by an animal welfare group 

 challenging the issuance of a permit for scientific research by 

 the Fish and Wildlife Service under the Marine Mammal Protection 

 Act. 



The permit authorized the temporary capture and sampling of 

 up to 650 Alaskan sea otters and the surgical implantation of 

 transmitters in up to 275 of those otters. The research is part 

 of the Service's efforts to determine the magnitude, extent, and 

 duration of impacts from the Exxon Valdez oil spill on the sea 

 otter population. 



The plaintiffs charged that the permit violated the Marine 

 Mammal Protection Act in that the authorized research would be 

 unnecessarily duplicative and would not produce scientifically 

 valid data. In addition, the plaintiffs asserted that the 

 decision to authorize the research was premature because, 

 although the study was to be conducted as part of the Natural 

 Resources Damage Assessment Plan prepared pursuant to the Compre- 

 hensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 

 the permit was issued prior to the close of the public comment 

 period on the draft Assessment Plan and prior to approval of the 

 Plan. The Federal defendant's answer is due 12 January 1990. 



172 



