495 



species or smaller taxa in a common spatial ar- 

 rangement, that interbreed when mature. 

 (12) The term "Secretary" means — 



(A) the Secretary of the department in which 

 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin- 

 istration is operating, as to all responsibility, 

 authority, funding, and duties under this chap- 

 ter with respect to members of the order Cetacea 

 and members, other than walruses, of the order 

 Pinnipedia, and 



(B) the Secretary of the Interior as to all re- 

 sponsibility, authority, funding, and dutie? un- 

 der this chapter with respect to all other marine 

 mammals covered by this chapter. 



(13) The term "take" means to harass, hunt, 

 capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, cap- 

 ture, or kill any marine mammal. 



(14) The term "United States" includes the sev- 

 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Com- 

 monwealth of Puerto Rico, the Canal Zone, the 

 possessions of the United States, and the Trust 

 Territory of the Pacific Islands. 



(15) The term "waters under the jurisdiction 

 of the United States" means — 



(A) the territorial sea of the United States, 

 and 

 (B) the waters included within a zone, contiguous 

 to the territorial sea of the United States, of which 

 the inner boundary is a line coterminous with the 

 seaward boundary of each coastal State, and the 

 outer boundary is a line drawn in such a manner 

 that each point on it is 200 nautical miles from the 

 baseline from which the territorial sea is measured. 

 (Pub. L. 92-522, § 3, Oct. 21, 1972, 86 Stat. 1028, 

 amended Pub. L. 93-205, § 13(e) (1), Dec. 28, 1973, 

 87 Stat. 903; amended Pub. L. 94-265, § 404(a), 

 Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 360.) 



Amendments 



1976 — Section 404(a) of Pub. L. 94-265 provided for a 

 200-nauticaI mile outer boundary. 



1973— Par. (1) (B) Pub. L. 93-205 substituted "Endan- 

 gered Species Act of 1973" for "Endangered Species Con- 

 servation Act of 1969". 



Effective Date of 1976 Amendment 



Sec. 404(b) of Public Law 94-265 provided that the 

 amendment made by sec. 404(a) would take effect on 

 March 1, 1977. 



StTBCHAPTER I.— CONSERVATION AND 

 PROTEcmON OF MARINE MAMMALS 



§ 1371. Moratorium on taking and importing marine 

 mammals and marine mammal products. 



(a) Imposition; exceptions. 



There shall be a moratorium on the taking and 

 importation of marine mammals and marine mam- 

 mal products, commencing on the effective date of 

 this Act, during which time no permit may be issued 

 for the taking of any marine mammal and no marine 

 mammal or marine mammal product may be im- 

 ported into the United States except in the following 

 cases : 



( 1 ) Permits may be issued by the Secretary for 



taking and importation for purposes of scientific 



research and for public display if — 



(A) the taking proposed in the application for 

 any such permit, or 



<B) the importation proposed to be made, 

 is first reviewed by the Marine Mammal Commis- 

 sion and the Committee of Scientific Advisors on 

 Marine Mammals established under subchapter 

 II of this chapter. The Commission and Commit- 

 tee shall recommend any proposed taking or im- 

 portation which is consistent with the purposes 

 and policies of section 1361 of this title. The Sec- 

 retary shall, if he grants approval for importa- 

 tion, issue to the importer concerned a certificate 

 to that effect which shall be in such form as the 

 Secretary of the Treasury prescribes and such 

 importation may be made upon presentation of 

 the certificate to the customs officer concerned. 



(2) During the twenty-four calendar months 

 initially following October 21, 1972. the taking of 

 marine mammals incidental to the course of com- 

 mercial fishing operations shall be permitted, and 

 shall not he subject to the provisions of sections 

 1373 and 1374 of .this title: Provided, That such 

 taking conforms to such conditions and regula- 

 tions as the Secretary is authorized and directed 

 to impose pursuant to section 1381 of this title 

 to insure that those techniques and equipment are 

 used which will produce the least practicable 

 hazard to marine mammals in such commercial 

 fishing operations. Subsequent to such twenty- 

 four months, marine mammals may be taken in- 

 cidentally in the course of commercial fishing op- 

 erations and permits may be issued thereof pur- 

 suant to section 1374 of this title, subject to 

 regulations prescritied by the Secretary in accord- 

 ance with section 1373 of this title. In any event 

 it shall be the immediate goal that the incidental 

 kill or incidental serious injury of marine mam- 

 mals permitted in the course of commercial fish- 

 ing operations be reduced to insignificant levels 

 approaching a zero mortality and serious injiiry 

 rate. The Secretary shall request the Committee 

 on Scientific Advisors on Marine Mammals to 

 prepare for public dissemination detailed esti- 

 mates of the numbers of mammals killed or seri- 

 ously injured imder existing commercial fishing 

 technologj' and imder the technology which shall 

 be required subsequent to such twenty-four- 

 month period. The Secretary of the Treasury shall 

 ban the importation of commercial fish or prod- 

 ucts from fish which have been caught with com- 

 mercial fishing technology which results in the 

 incidental kill or incidental serious injury of 

 ocean mammals in excess of United States stand- 

 ards. The Secretary shall insist on reasonable 

 proof from the government of any nation from 

 which fish or fish products will be exported to the 

 United States of the effects on ocean mammals of 

 the commercial fishing technology in use for such 

 fish or fish products exported from such nation 

 to the United States. 



(3) (A) The Secretary, on the basis of the best 

 scientific evidence available and in consultation 

 with the Marine Mammal Commission, is author- 

 ized and directed, from time to time, having due 

 regard to the distribution, abundance, breeding 

 habits, and times and lines of migratory move- 



