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THE ALEUT COMMUNITY COUNCIL, ST. PAUL ISLAND, ALASKA 



Whereas, the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island is organized under the Indian 

 Reorganization Act of June 18, 1934, as amended by the Alaska Act of May 1, 

 1936, and under its Constitution and Bylaws, and Cori)orate Charter, are 

 authorized to do business ; And 



Whereas, in addition to a land base, which after one hundred years is finally 

 being made pos.sible through the Fur Seal Act of 1966 authored by the late 

 Senator Bob Bartlett. It is imperative that we retain our only source of income 

 which is the seal industry ; And 



Whereas, through lack of knowledge of local people and conditions the author 

 of S. 1315 implies that some one hundred fifty (150) men will become guides 

 and rangers if they agree to stop sealing ; And 



Whereas, though the Harris Bill, S. 1315, may address itself to a general 

 condition, it is detrimental to our way of life and future existence. NOW. 



Therefore, be it resolved by the Council of the Aleut Community of St. Paul 

 Island, and on behalf of the unorganized Aleut Community of St. George Island, 

 that they do not endorse S. 1315 because it will kill our only source of income 

 without providing any practical alternative industry to sustain our people and 

 future on the islands ; further, that they do not want to move or be moved off 

 their islands. 



The undersigned residents of the Aleut Community of St. Paul strongly en- 

 dorse the above resolution and respectfully request the Honorable Senator Fred 

 Harris of Oklahoma to withdraw S. 1315 for it is detrimental to our very liveli- 

 hood. If S. 1315 is passed, it could mean the death of the largest Aleut Com- 

 munity in the world and we believe that this is not Mr. Harris' intention. We 

 feel that if the Senator had adequate information of the Pribilofs, the Bill would 

 not have been proposed. 



Senator Stevens. As further documentation for the position that I 

 have taken, I would also like to insert certain additional data. One of 

 tl>e documents is a news release issued by Secretary of Commerce. 

 Maurice H. Stans, after a recent visit to the Pribilof Islands. Secretary 

 Stans concluded his statement with the observation that : 



Ending the program (on the Pribilofs) would not be in the interest of a sus- 

 tained seal population, the Aleut workers or the federal government. I repeat, 

 if and when more humane methods for harvesting are found and satisfactorily 

 tested, they will be adopted. 



In addition to the news release, I would like to insert an article 

 printed in the July 1971 edition of NO A A, a publication of the Na- 

 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the Department 

 of Commerce. In this article, entitled, "A Thriving Herd," Mr. John 

 A. Guinan points out that under National Marine Fisheries Service 

 management, the Pribilof seal herd has come back from near extinc- 

 tion. In addition, he describes the management techniques employed 

 on the island and exposes certain fictions that have been widely dis- 

 seminated about the seal harvest. 



Mr. DiNGELL. Without objection, so ordered. 



(The information follows :) 



Conclusions on Methods Used in Harvesting Seals 



U.S. Department of Commerce, 



WasJiington, D.C., Julij H, 1971. 



Secretary of Commerce Maurice H. Stans today reported his conclusions on 

 methods used in the harvesting of seals, following his return from a visit to the 

 Pribilof Islands off the Alaskan Coast in the Bering Sea on July 8th and 9th. 



Secretary Stans went to the Pribilofs to observe fur seal management and 

 conservation practices there, and to review harvesting methods in light of recent 

 criticisms of the practices. 



