554 



The Protection Division has prepared a summary for you and I trust this in- 

 formation will be of assistance. 



Sincerely, 



Don Mcknight, 



Acting Director, Division of Game. 

 Enclosure. 



July 13, 1971. 



Mr. Gordon W. Watson, 



Area Director, Bureau of Sports Fisheries and Wildlife, 



Anchorage, Alaska. 



Dear Gordon : I was aware of the complaint filed by the Friends of Animals 

 seeking a declaration of a federal court that the polar bear is threatened with 

 extinction and a court order that it be placed on the endangered species list. 

 The Alaska Department of Fish and Game holds to the view that placing the 

 polar bear on the endangered species list at the present time, or within the fore- 

 seeable future, either by way of a court order or upon the demand of an ill 

 informed special interest group would be depriving the citizens of the United 

 States of a valuable right unnecessarily. 



By any reasonable standard, the management program carried out in Alaska 

 in relation to polar bears has been a .successful one. Harvest data anlyses, 

 which are the basis for polar bear hunting regulations in Alaska, do not indicate 

 that over exploitation of the population off the Alaskan coast is now in prospect 

 or has occurred in the past. From a biological standpoint, there are no reasons 

 to suggest that complete curtailment or significant reduction in the polar bear 

 harvest level is necessary. 



It is a well known fact that the Alaska Board of Fish and Game, which is the 

 regulatory agency responsible for the management of fish and game resources, 

 does consider and respond to prevailing socio-economic conditions as well as to 

 sound biological data. In response to public sentiment against the use of aircraft 

 in hunting polar bear, the Department intends to present to the Board a com- 

 prehensive analysis of the aircraft hunting situation from Alaska, for their study 

 and consideration. It should be pointed out that the curtailment of aircraft hunt- 

 ing will eliminate a major portion of the polar bear harvest, leaving only the 

 minimal take represented by those engaged in hunting bears on foot. This 

 examination of the situation could possibly make the present suit superfluous 

 and certainly demonstrates the concern shown this valuable resource. It is felt 

 that the management of game re.sources is a matter which should be left to the 

 state most concerned under the guidance of experts who are intimately familiar 

 with the habitat and the actual condition of the specie. 



It is evident from the complaint that Friends of Animals is not aware of the 

 strict regulatory controls the Board of Fish and Game has applied to polar bear 

 hunting in Alaska. Apparently too, they are not aware of the extensive polar 

 bear harvest statistics which are compiled by the Alaska Department of Fish 

 and Game. Nor, do they seem to have an understanding of polar bear habitat and 

 its actual location relative to the gas and oil development at Pirudhoe Bay. The 

 details of seasons, bag limits, permit requirements, sealing requirements and any 

 other information the Department of Fish and Game may require regarding polar 

 bear harvest need not be discussed here. However, this information is readily 

 available should it be required. 



The court order or injunction against all future polar bear research also does 

 not appear to be warranted. A re.sponsible scientifically sound research program 

 similar to the cooperative efforts of our Department and the Bureau of Sports 

 Fisheries and Wildlife is currently conducting, coordinated with the efforts of 

 other arctic polar bear nations, is, in our opinion, an absolute perequiste for 

 understanding and insuring the continued well being of the arctic polar bear 

 population. 



Again, information pertaining to polar bear harvests and our research pro- 

 grams will be made available to you upon request. 

 Sincerely yours, 



Wallace H. Noerenberg, 



Commissioner. 



