516 



STATEMENT OF TED PANKOWSKI, DIRECTOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL 

 AFFAIRS, IZAAK WALTON LEAGUE OF AMERICA 



Mr. Pankowski. Thank you very miicli, Mr. Chairman. 



I am Ted Pankowski, director of environmental affairs for the 

 Izaak Walton Lt»a<?ue of America. As the committee may know, we 

 joined many of our colleague organizations in opposing what we 

 believe is an ill-advised demand for a total and absolute ban on the 

 taking of marine mammals under any circumstances. The result has 

 been that the league is included on a list circulat-ed by one organiza- 

 tion involved in this problem and entitled "Assassins Unlimited." 



This is indeed regrettable. I have been associated with the league 

 and conservation for only a few years. But in that short time, I have 

 seen firsthand the kind of personal sacrifices citizens, like our member- 

 ship, are making voluntarily to protect and restore our environment. 

 It is most difficult to conceal anger and disappointment over this kind 

 of injustice done them. In fact, it makes us especially grateful to the 

 committee foi- a chance to comment on this important legislation. 



The fact of the matter is that there are few, if any, of us who do not 

 welcome the concerns of the sponsors of the original legislation. Sen- 

 ator Harris and Congressman Pryor have placed in sharp perspective 

 the continuing needs of marine mammals and mankind's responsi- 

 bility to itself to protect them. An increasing number of the American 

 public in this issue is finally taking the time to articulate its environ- 

 mental ethic. And we are witnessing an expression of appreciation for 

 other living creatures that must surely have application in our rela- 

 tionships with each other. Isn't this what conservationists have worked 

 for, for nearly a century ? We can object to it. 



Moreover, we have a timely warning in a technological age that 

 "environmental management" is not an end in itself ; that no use of our 

 outdoor heritage, however legitimate, can survive without abundance 

 for all ; and that we cannot become complacent or smug about ourselves 

 when so much of the natural w^orld is dying all around us. The pre- 

 carious existence of many species, including certain marine mammals, 

 illustrates this full well. 



From its nearly 50 years of involvement, the League has learned 

 from sometimes painful experience that a total ban on the taking of 

 animals is no guarantee that a species will survive or do well. Because 

 of other, more critical factors, it may only hasten tliat. unliappy day. 

 Tlie conmiittee knows them well — the destruction of habitats, the 

 the poisoning of environments, manipulation of resources that upset 

 natural balances, overkilling — all manmade pix^blems society is only 

 beginning to deal with effectively. It seems apparent that an effective 

 marine mammals bill must take all of these into account. "Where is the 

 outrage over the tons of mercury these creatures pick up and trans- 

 mit to the Aleuts w^ho eat them? One TV documentary suggested that 

 this entire controversy over controlled killing of Pribilof seals may be 

 entirely irrelevant because of this fact, 



"VVliatever it is, the League does not opi>ose a total ban on the tak- 

 ing of animals when it is essential or part of a restoration program. 

 In Minnesota, for example, we are supporting the State in closing 

 the 1971 deer hunting season until the reasons for that species' decline 

 can be understood. If it is hunting, so be it. Jusit as we have insisted on 



