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with few exceptions, if there is a lack of information 

 regarding the impacts of the proposed additional extraction 

 activity, and the industry cannot produce that needed 

 information, that activity, in this case fishing, should not be 

 allowed to proceed. We can no longer take the risk of unknown 

 long term permanent impacts to a fragile marine ecosystem. The 

 Steller Sea Lion offers us a good example for this situation. 

 There is a growing consensus that overfishing of the Steller 's 

 prime food source the pollock is a major factor in the continuing 

 decline of the animal yet, the level of fishing continues to 

 grow. This continuing denial is directly contradictory to the 

 leadership role that the United States has played in the Southern 

 Ocean on this issue. The U.S. has not hesitated to call on the 

 Russians and the Japanese to stop the overfishing of krill 

 because of its potential affects on predators such as the 

 penguin. If fishers want to continue to fish, the burden should 

 be on them to show that there fishing will not adversely impact 

 the marine mammal populations that interact with their fishing 

 method. Acceptance of this obligation is essential to the 

 success of any regime governing the interactions of marine 

 mammals and commercial fishing that will still be consistent with 

 the goals of the MMPA. 



As my colleague, Suzanne ludicello said in her statement, we 

 have begun the process that we all swore we would avoid after the 

 experience five years ago. I personally was not there but I 

 heard enough stories that I felt like I had endured the trials 



