MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION - Annual Report for 1998 



impacts of noise, physical and biological habitat 

 degradation, effects of fisheries, Arctic issues, and 

 disease and mortality events. The IWC also resolved 

 to establish "environmental concerns" as a regular 

 agenda item at its meetings under which the Scientific 

 Committee would report annually on its progress in 

 non-lethal research in this area. It is expected that a 

 proposal to establish an environmental research fund 

 will be considered by the IWC at its 1999 meeting. 



Small Cetaceans — An ongoing debate within the 

 IWC is whether the International Convention for the 

 Regulation of Whaling confers jurisdiction over small 

 cetaceans as well as large whales. Although this issue 

 has never been resolved, the parties have been willing 

 to take limited actions concerning small cetaceans. At 

 its 1998 meeting the Scientific Committee conducted 

 a review of small cetaceans in the Indian Ocean and 

 Red Sea, with special reference to the Middle East. 

 The Scientific Committee intends to focus on review- 

 ing the status of freshwater cetaceans at its 1999 

 meeting and thereafter to examine the status of small 

 cetaceans in the Caribbean region. 



At its 1998 meeting the IWC adopted one resolu- 

 tion dealing with small cetaceans. That resolution 

 expressed concern that some directed takes of beluga 

 whales might not be sustainable. Of particular con- 

 cern was the harvest of beluga whales from the west 

 Greenland population. The IWC encouraged the 

 Scientific Committee to review the status of beluga 

 whales and narwhals at the 1999 meeting. 



Southern Ocean Sanctuary — In 1994 the IWC 

 established a whale sanctuary in the Southern Ocean. 

 As discussed in previous annual reports, Japan filed 

 an objection to this provision and continues to conduct 

 scientific whaling in sanctuary waters. As in past 

 years, Japan questioned the legal and scientific basis 

 for the sanctuary at the IWC's 1998 meeting. 



The IWC as a whole, however, adopted a resolu- 

 tion reiterating its commitment to the sanctuary. The 

 resolution affirms the objectives of the sanctuary as 

 providing for the recovery of whale stocks, allowing 

 an assessment of the effects of the moratorium on 

 commercial whaling, and enabling research on the 

 effects of environmental change to be undertaken. 

 The IWC's Scientific Committee is working with 



other international organizations to develop a major 

 cooperative research program in the Southern Ocean 

 sanctuary during 2000 and 2001. 



Humane Killing Methods — For many years, the 

 IWC has sought to develop improved methods for 

 killing whales, with the goal that death should be as 

 quick and painless as possible. It was agreed that a 

 workshop of specialists would be convened in 1999 to 

 examine these issues. There was, however, consider- 

 able disagreement over whether the workshop should 

 reference humaneness or simply refer to killing 

 methods. In this regard, some members argued that 

 the issue of humaneness is outside the competence of 

 the IWC. A decision was made to defer naming the 

 working group until the 1999 meeting. 



Cooperation with Other Organizations — As 



discussed later in this chapter, the parties to the 

 Convention on International Trade in Endangered 

 Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) considered 

 proposals at their 1997 meeting to downlist four 

 stocks of minke whales, the eastern North Pacific 

 stock of gray whales, and the western North Pacific 

 stock of Bryde's whales from Appendix I to Appendix 

 II. Doing so could open commercial trade in whale 

 meat internationally. In response to these proposals, 

 the CITES parties affirmed an earlier resolution to 

 consult with the IWC concerning proposals to amend 

 the listing of whales on the CITES appendices. 



This debate carried over to the 1997 FWC meeting 

 and has prompted the FWC to examine its relation- 

 ships with other international organizations. At its 

 1998 meeting the IWC adopted a resolution expressing 

 appreciation for the decision by CITES to uphold 

 prior actions to promote cooperation between the two 

 organizations. The FWC reaffirmed the importance of 

 continued cooperation and requested that the CITES 

 Secretariat continue to consult with it concerning 

 proposals to amend the listing of whales on the CITES 

 appendices. The resolution also called on IWC 

 members to observe fully past resolutions on trade in 

 whale products. 



New Scientiflc Journal — The IWC approved the 

 establishment of a new scientific publication, the 

 Journal on Cetacean Research and Management. 

 Publication is expected to begin in April 1999. 



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