18 



craft purposes is maintained; 2) that cooperative efforts are en- 

 hanced between the Alaskan natives and the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service in managing polar bear, sea otter and walrus populations; 

 and 3) that the restrictions regarding importation of personal items 

 made from marine mammal parts be relaxed. 



The Commission supports retention of the existing exemption for 

 Alaskan natives. As was recognized by Congress when the Act was 

 passed in 1972, traditional uses of marine mammals by Alaskan 

 natives should be protected and given primacy over other uses. 



The Commission shares the belief that cooperative efforts be- 

 tween appropriate government agencies and native groups provide 

 the best long-term solution for managing the take of marine mam- 

 mals so as to not adversely affect marine mammal populations 

 while meeting subsistence requirements. 



The Commission further believes that the Act now provides au- 

 thority to the Fish and Wildlife Service to grant financial assist- 

 ance to Alaskan natives participating in cooperative management 

 activity, but that it might be useful to note this in report language 

 so as to help ensure that moneys are available. 



The amendment to authorize importation of certain marine mam- 

 mal items would likely have little effect on marine mammal popu- 

 lations but would have important benefits to Alaskan natives by 

 fostering relations among circumpolar natives. With a few minor 

 modifications, enactment of such an amendment is supported by 

 the Commission. 



Thank you for inviting me to speak to you today. 



[Statement of Dr. Reynolds can be found at the end of the hear- 

 ing.] 



Mr. Studds. Thank you very much, sir. Next, Mr. Robert Jenkins 

 of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. Mr. Jenkins. 



STATEMENT OF ROBERT JENKINS, AMERICAN ZOO AND 

 AQUARIUM ASSOCIATION, ALLIANCE FOR MARINE MAMMAL 

 PARTIES AND AQUARIUMS 



Mr. Jenkins. Good morning. Mr. Chairman and members of the 

 Committee, I am Robert Jenkins, Executive Officer for Environ- 

 mental Affairs at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. 



Today I am representing the 31 members of the Alliance of Ma- 

 rine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and the 162 accredited institu- 

 tional members of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. 



The Alliance and the AZA strongly support the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act. The MMPA was enacted to protect declining popu- 

 lations of marine mammals. To increase awareness and generate 

 support, Congress looked to zoos and aquariums to educate the 

 public about these magnificent animals. It is understood that pub- 

 lic display facilities reached millions of Americans every year with 

 effective education and conservation messages. 



Today, more than 115 million people visit our facilities each year. 

 In addition to learning the basics of marine mammal biology and 

 natural history, visitors to our facilities leave with a new aware- 

 ness that the health of the natural world and human behavior are 

 closely intertwined. 



In addition to the displays and information that are presented to 

 all visitors, our facilities reach out to our communities with spe- 



