listing of Steller sea lions as "endangered" under the Endangered 

 Species Act. On 20 December 1989, the Commission wrote to the 

 Service recommending that it act immediately on that petition and 

 that it complete and distribute a draft Steller Sea Lion 

 Conservation Plan by March 1990 at the latest. In its letter, 

 the Commission noted that, because designation as endangered or 

 threatened automatically confers depleted status upon a 

 population or species, there is no purpose to be served by 

 pursuing depleted status separately. 



Concern for the status of Steller sea lions also was 

 expressed by the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council at 

 its December 1989 meeting. Recognizing the seriousness of the 

 situation, the Council called upon the Secretary of Commerce to: 

 (1) intensify research on the causes of the decline with 

 particular regard for man-made impacts; (2) initiate an 

 aggressive program to educate the fishing industry on fishing 

 strategies that will minimize incidental capture or inadvertent 

 harassment of sea lions; and (3) establish a working group of 

 scientists, fishery managers, members of the fishing industry, 

 and representatives of the environmental community to determine 

 what can be done immediately to help reverse the population 

 decline. 



At the end of 1989, it was the Commission's understanding 

 that the Service was reviewing the petition to list Steller sea 

 lions as endangered and preparing its response. 



Humpback Whale (Meqaptera novaeanqliae) 



Humpback whales, which are found in most of the world's 

 oceans, have been severely reduced in number as a result of 

 commercial whaling. Commercial exploitation of the species has 

 been banned by the International Whaling Commission since 1966. 

 In 1970, the species was designated as endangered under the U.S. 

 Endangered Species Preservation Act, which was replaced by the 

 Endangered Species Act of 1973. As noted in Chapter V of this 

 Report, the International Whaling Commission has authorized the 

 take of up to three humpback whales annually for traditional 

 subsistence purposes by residents of St. Vincent and the 

 Grenadines. 



Three of thirteen recognized stocks of humpback whales occur 

 in U.S. waters. The primary threats to recovery of these stocks 

 are commercial and recreational vessel traffic, offshore oil and 

 gas development, commercial fisheries, and coastal development. 



Draft Recovery Plan 



As noted in previous Annual Reports, the Commission 

 recommended in 1984 and again in 1986 that the National Marine 



51 



