approached from a local or regional perspective. Similar 

 problems have become evident in a number of areas and the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service is considering the possible 

 advantages of promulgating regulations that would be generally 

 applicable and provide a more consistent approach to regulating 

 whale watching and other activities in different areas. 



In 1988, the National Marine Fisheries Service contracted 

 with the Center for Environmental Education (now the Center for 

 Marine Conservation) to organize and convene a workshop to assess 

 and determine how best to avoid disturbance, stress, and other 

 problems potentially caused by whale watching. The workshop, 

 held in Monterey, California, on 14-16 November 1988, included 

 representatives of the Commission, the whale-watching industry, 

 environmental groups, and the scientific community. The workshop 

 concluded, among other things, that: (1) whale watching provides 

 useful opportunities for educating the public, for developing an 

 ecologically sound conservation ethic, and for conducting basic 

 research on the distribution, abundance, and behavior of whales; 

 (2) whale watching can disturb and alter the behavior of whales 

 which, in turn, may affect vital processes such as feeding and 

 reproduction, and cause decreases in the survival or productivity 

 of whales; and (3) a licensing or permit system should be 

 developed to help insure that operators of whale-watching vessels 

 are aware of applicable regulations and operate accordingly. 



The workshop report, completed early in 1989, is being 

 reviewed by the National Marine Fisheries Service to help 

 determine what regulations or other measures may be necessary to 

 insure that whale watching is not inconsistent with the goals and 

 provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. 



Other Efforts To Protect Humpback Whales 



The western North Atlantic population of humpback whales 

 breeds and calves during the winter months in the Caribbean, 

 principally on Silver, Navidad, and Mouchoir Banks north of the 

 Greater Antilles. About 85 percent of the whales winter in the 

 vicinity of Silver Bank, which is located primarily in waters of 

 the Dominican Republic, about 80 miles north of the island of 

 Hispaniola. 



As discussed in previous Annual Reports, the Center for 

 Marine Conservation initiated a public education program in the 

 Dominican Republic in 1985 to promote efforts to protect humpback 

 whales on their winter grounds. In addition, the Center provided 

 support to the Center for Marine Biological Research at the 

 Autonomous University of Santo Domingo for a biological inventory 

 of marine resources in the Dominican Republic. A report of the 

 inventory was completed in 1986 and, on 14 October 1986, the 

 President of the Dominican Republic designated Silver Bank as a 

 humpback whale sanctuary. The Presidential decree creating the 



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