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ARCTIC MARINE RESOURCE COMMISSION 



Statement to the 



U. S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence 



Fairbanks, Alaska 



August 15, 1992 



Thank you for this opportunity to address the U. S. Senate Select 

 Committee on Intelligence on behalf of the Arctic Marine Resource 

 Commission (AMRC). AMRC was established by several Alaskan 

 native organizations to deal with common concerns about oil and gas 

 development along the Alaskan Coast. Our primary concern is for 

 the protection of marine resources upon which we depend on for our 

 nutritional and cultural needs. 



Our membership includes the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission, 

 the Alaska and Inuvialuit Beluga Whale Committee, Alaska Eskimo 

 Walrus Commission, Boring Sea Fisherman's Association, Chukchi 

 Sea Fisherman's Cooperative and the Northwest Arctic Native 

 Association. Our members come from Alaskan villages as far south 

 as Tyonek in the Cook Inlet Region to the northern arctic village of 

 Kaktovik near the Canadian Boarder. 



Since the revelation of nuclear dumping and toxic waste in the former 

 Soviet Union, we have been waiting anxiously for more information. 



We want to know if there are any harmful elements in marine 

 mammals which we eat as part of our daily diet. Our diet is very 

 important to our health. Wo have seen a jump in heart disease and 

 diabetes in the indigenous population in.Alaska with the addition of 

 some western foods to our daily diet. Hekrt disease and diabetes 

 were uncommon until the native population began eating more 

 "western foods. We are just learning how important it is for us to 

 continue to include fish and other traditional foods in our diet to 

 maintain our physical health. 



We want and need to know about the pollution that has been recently 

 been in the news from the former Soviet Union. We need baseline 

 iiiformation and long range monitoring programs to see whether or 

 not there are any harmful impacts on our marine resources such as 

 fish, seal, walrus, bowhead and beluga whales. 



