MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION - Annual Report for 1998 



As discussed in the previous annual report, the 

 House Resources Committee convened a hearing early 

 in 1997 to review the Service's implementation of the 

 polar bear import provisions. That led to enactment 

 of an amendment to the Marine Mammal Protection 

 Act to allow imports of all polar bear trophies legally 

 taken in Canada prior to 30 April 1994. 



Shortly after the publication of the final regula- 

 tions in February 1997, the Commission requested 

 and received from the Service additional information 

 on Canada's polar bear program. Among other 

 things, Canada had revised the boundaries of some of 

 the polar bear management units. What previously 

 had comprised three management units (Queen Eliza- 

 beth Island, Parry Channel, and Baffin Bay) had been 

 realigned into smaller Baffin Bay and Queen Elizabeth 

 Islands units and three new management units (Kane 

 Basin, Lancaster Sound, and Norwegian Bay). The 

 Commission contracted with a biometrician to review 

 and evaluate Canada's polar bear management pro- 

 gram, particularly as it relates to the current status 

 and sustainability of those populations for which the 

 Fish and Wildlife Service deferred making findings 

 under the final rule. A final contract report was 

 submitted to the Commission on 21 April 1997 (see 

 Appendix B, Testa 1997). The report concluded that 

 the Canadian polar bear program is consistent with 

 generally accepted principles of sound resource 

 management. The report also concluded that avail- 

 able data supported Canada's realignment of the 

 Queen Elizabeth Islands, Parry Channel, and Baffin 

 Bay management units. 



Based on the analyses in the contract report and 

 its independent review of the available data, the 

 Commission wrote to the Fish and Wildlife Service on 

 22 April 1997, providing a copy of the contract report 

 and noting that it appears that the Lancaster Sound 

 and Norwegian Bay management units have manage- 

 ment programs in place that satisfy the Marine Mam- 

 mal Protection Act's import requirements. The 

 Commission recommended that the Service, if it 

 concurs with that conclusion, initiate a rulemaking to 

 make affirmative findings for these two management 

 units. 



The Fish and Wildlife Service published a pro- 

 posed rule on 2 February 1998 to make affirmative 

 findings for the Lancaster Sound and Norwegian Bay 

 management units. The Commission provided com- 

 ments by letter of 1 April 1998. The Commission 

 supported the proposed findings, noting that the sport- 

 hunting programs for these populations are based on 

 scientifically sound quotas ensuring their maintenance 

 at sustainable levels. The Commission noted that 

 Canada has implemented a new, flexible system for 

 establishing quotas, which appears to be conceptually 

 sound. The Commission nevertheless recommended 

 that the Service closely track implementation of the 

 new system to ensure that it works as expected and 

 continues to meet the Marine Mammal Protection 

 Act's requirements. The Service expected to pub- 

 lished a final rule early in 1999, making findings for 

 imports of polar bear trophies from the Lancaster 

 Sound and Norwegian Bay management units. It was 

 expected that the Service would defer approval of the 

 Baffin Bay, Queen Elizabeth Islands, and Kane Basin 

 populations pending the establishment of cooperative 

 management arrangements between Canada and 

 Greenland. 



Under the 1994 amendments to the Marine Mam- 

 mal Protection Act, the Fish and Wildlife Service was 

 directed to undertake a scientific review of the impact 

 of issuing import permits on the polar bear popula- 

 tions in Canada. The review was to be completed by 

 30 April 1996. No permits could be issued after 30 

 September 1996 if the review indicated that the 

 issuance of such permits was having a significant 

 adverse effect on Canadian polar bear stocks. Be- 

 cause the regulations authorizing imports had not been 

 issued by the time the review was to be completed, no 

 review was undertaken. In this regard, the regula- 

 tions published by the Service on 18 February 1997 

 specified that the review would be undertaken within 

 two years of 20 March 1997. Now that the regula- 

 tions have been in place a sufficient amount of time, 

 the Service is conducting a review. 



As of the end of 1998 the Service had issued 183 

 permits authorizing the import of polar bear trophies 

 from Canada. 



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