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Date: Mon, 31 Mar 1997 08:11:24 -0500
From: Kate Wing <[log in to unmask]>
Freshwater Fisheries
{BARTON SPRINGS SALAMANDER PROTECTION. ON MAR. 26, 1997, U.S.
DISTRICT JUDGE LUCIUS BUNTON RULED THAT INTERIOR SECRETARY
BABBITT VIOLATED THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT IN 1996 WHEN HE
WITHDREW THE PROPOSED LISTING OF TEXAS' BARTON SPRINGS SALAMANDER
AFTER STATE AGENCIES AGREED WITH THE U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE
SERVICE ON A COOPERATIVE CONSERVATION PLAN FOR THE SPECIES.}
[ASSOC PRESS]
Eurasian Ruffe Symposium. On Mar. 21, 1997, the National Sea
Grant College Program is sponsoring an international symposium in
Ann Arbor, MI, on eurasian ruffe, an unintentionally introduced
species in the Great Lakes. [Sea Grant press release]
Uncollected Fishing License Fees. On Mar. 18, 1997, state
examiners released an audit of the WA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife
indicating as much as $730,000 is owed the Dept., mostly from
1994 hunting and fishing license sales at retail outlets. At
least 155 outlets failed to submit license revenues. [Assoc
Press]
Bull Trout. On Mar. 13, 1997, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) announced that 2 populations of bull trout (in the
Klamath and Columbia River basins) qualify for listing under the
Endangered Species Act based on 1994 data, but requested a
5-month delay (until Aug. 15, 1997) to study 1997 data. FWS
reported that listing was not warranted for 3 stable or
increasing populations in the coastal/Puget Sound area, WA;
Jarbridge River, NV; and the Saskatchewan River, Alberta, Canada.
{On Mar. 25, 1997, 2 MT conservation groups asked U.S. District
Judge Robert Jones to order the Fish and Wildlife Service to
immediately list bull trout as a threatened or endangered
species.} [Assoc Press, NW Fishletter No. 30]
Chippewa Treaty Fishing. On Mar. 7, 1997, U.S. District Court
Judge Michael Davis rejected MN's request for a 4-month delay in
the exercise of newly granted fishing rights by the Mille Lacs
band of Chippewa and 7 other bands, holding that the bands have
been deprived of their treaty right to fish for too many years.
MN officials reported plans to file an appeal. {ON MAR. 27,
1997, MN GOVERNOR ARNE CARLSON REQUESTED TIME DURING TELEVISION
EVENING NEWS BROADCASTS ON APR. 7, 1997, FOR A PUBLIC ADDRESS TO
STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF AVOIDING TENSION AND PREVENTING VIOLENCE
IN IMPLEMENTING TREATY FISHING RIGHTS.} [Assoc Press]
Kokanee Salmon in Dworshak Reservoir. On Mar. 7, 1997, ID
biologists reported to the ID Fish and Game Commission that they
plan to use strobe lights and noise to scare kokanee salmon away
from Dworshak Dam to preclude repeating the extensive loss
experienced in 1996 when more than 1 million kokanee were lost in
spills to discharge high runoff. [Assoc Press]
Whirling Disease. On Mar. 6-8, 1997, a national symposium on
whirling disease was scheduled to convene in Logan, UT. [Assoc
Press]
Marine Mammals
{WEST COAST PINNIPED DRAFT REPORT. ON MAR. 27, 1997, NMFS
RELEASED A 17-PAGE DRAFT REPORT TO CONGRESS ON WEST COAST
PINNIPEDS (SEALS AND SEA LIONS). THE REPORT RECOMMENDS, UNDER
CERTAIN SITUATIONS, KILLING SOME PARTICULARLY VORACIOUS PACIFIC
HARBOR SEALS AND CALIFORNIA SEA LIONS TO PROTECT ENDANGERED
SALMON. IN ADDITION, THE REPORT SUGGESTS THAT FISHERMEN BE
ALLOWED TO KILL SEA LIONS AND SEALS AS A LAST RESORT TO PROTECT
GEAR AND CATCH. WEST COAST SEAL AND SEA LION POPULATIONS ARE
REPORTED TO CONSUME 217,000 METRIC TONS OF FISH AND SHELLFISH
ANNUALLY.} [ASSOC PRESS]
{NZ SEA LION PROTECTION. ON MAR. 25, 1997, NEW ZEALAND
OFFICIALS CLOSED A SQUID FISHERY IN THE SOUTHERN OCEAN FOR THE
REMAINDER OF 1997 TO PROTECT A POPULATION OF HOOKER'S SEA LIONS.
IN BALANCING ECONOMIC INTERESTS AGAINST ECOLOGICAL DAMAGE,
FISHING INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVES CLAIMED EARLY CLOSURE OF THE
FISHERY WOULD RESULT IN A $13.9 MILLION LOSS IN EXPORT INCOME TO
PROTECT THE RARE SEA LIONS AFTER AN ESTIMATED 100 ANIMALS WERE
DROWNED IN SQUID NETS.} [REUTERS]
Japanese Coastal Whaling. On Mar. 19-21, 1997, an international
workshop convened in Sendai, Japan, to consider Japan's request
to the International Whaling Commission (IWC) for permission to
conduct a limited coastal hunt to kill 50 minke whales.
Recommendations from the workshop will be presented at the annual
IWC meeting in October 1997 in Monaco. [Dow Jones News]
Gully Protection. On Mar. 19, 1997, World Wildlife Fund Canada
launched a campaign to obtain federal government commitment to
protect The Gully, an underwater canyon near Sable Island off
Nova Scotia, said to be deeper and wider than the Grand Canyon.
The Gully is habitat for a population of northern bottlenose
whales, a species added to Canada's List of Species at Risk in
1996. Concerns include petroleum exploration and development
near The Gully. [World Wildlife Fund Canada press release via
Dow Jones News]
Ballard Locks Sea Lions. On Mar. 17, 1997, NMFS officials
reported a dramatic decline in the amount of time sea lions have
spent around Ballard Locks, WA, feeding on migration steelhead
trout and salmon -- from 91 hours in the first 2 months of 1996
to only 16 minutes during the same period in 1997. NMFS believes
that capturing and retaining 3 sea lions in captivity in May 1996
is responsible for the difference. [Assoc Press]
Greenland Minke Whale Quota. On Mar. 14, 1997, the Greenland
newspaper Sermitsiak reported that Greenland officials had
announced the 1997 aboriginal minke whale quota, with 148 minke
whales for western Greenland communities (99 of which are to be
taken by fishing boats equipped with harpoon guns) and 12 whales
for eastern Greenland communities. Since 1997 is the final year
of Greenland's 3-year aboriginal quota from the International
Whaling Commission (IWC), the IWC will consider new quotas at its
October 1997 meeting. [High North Alliance News]
Iceland Will Not Go Whaling. On Mar. 11, 1997, Icelandic Prime
Minister David Oddson announced on television that Iceland will
not harvest minke whales in the near future, since there
currently appears to be no legal avenue for marketing whalemeat.
[personal communication]
NAMMCO Scientific Committee Meeting. On Mar. 10-14, 1997, the
Scientific Committee of the North Atlantic Marine Mammal
Commission (NAMMCO) met in Tromso, Norway. Discussion focused on
the role of whales and seals in the marine ecosystem. New
information on the abundance of several whale stocks was reviewed
-- 72,000 for the central North Atlantic stock of minke whales;
22,800 for fin whales in the North Atlantic east of Greenland;
and 9,250 for sei whales in the North Atlantic east of Greenland.
New survey data were reported to have confirmed earlier estimates
of northeast Atlantic pilot whale abundance as stable at 778,000.
In reviewing ecological studies, the Scientific Committee
concluded that minke whales, harp seals, and hooded seals may
have substantial direct and/or indirect effects on commercial
fish stocks, but recommended that knowledge be improved. The
annual meeting of NAMMCO's Council will be held on May 27-30,
1997, in the Faroe Islands. [High North Alliance News]
Greenpeace on Steller's Sea Lion ESA Listing. On Mar. 6, 1997,
simultaneous press conferences were held in Seattle, WA, and
Washington, DC, by Greenpeace to protest what they consider to be
continued delay by NMFS in reclassifying Steller's sea lion as an
endangered species as proposed by NMFS on Oct. 4, 1995 (the
species is presently listed as threatened). In addition,
Greenpeace called for a reduction of pollock quotas in the North
Pacific, a ban on factory trawling, a new environmental impact
statement on the pollock fishery, and congressional hearings on
NMFS's alleged failure to protect the marine ecosystem. On Mar.
6, 1997, the Center for Marine Conservation (CMC) announced that
it was preparing a notice of intent to sue NMFS unless the
reclassification decision is announced. [Assoc Press, Reuters,
CMC press release, Greenpeace press release]
Northern Right Whales. In early March 1997, New England Aquarium
officials announced that a winter survey of northern right whales
found 15 or 16 new calves in breeding areas off southeastern GA
and northern FL, a significant increase for this endangered
population which numbers about 300 animals. Compared to 5
northern right whale deaths in the winter of 1995-1996, only one
whale died this year. [Assoc Press]
North Atlantic Whaling. On Mar. 1, 1997, Norwegian, Icelandic,
and Greenland sponsors held a conference on "Whaling in the North
Atlantic - Economic and Political Perspectives" in Reykjavik,
Iceland. [High North Alliance News]
Harp Seal-Fishery Interaction Workshop. On Feb. 24-27, 1997,
the Canadian Center for Fisheries Innovation along with Memorial
Univ. of Newfoundland sponsored a workshop on interactions
between harp seals and fisheries in the northwest Atlantic. The
workshop identified and prioritized data needed to assess whether
harp seals affect commercial fish stocks. [International Marine
Mammal Association web site]
Items in this summary are excerpted from a variety of information
sources. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is not
responsible for the accuracy of the various news items. For
additional information on items in this summary or their sources,
call Gene Buck (CRS-ENR) at 7-7262 or send a fax to 7-7289. This
summary is available daily or weekly (each Friday) via e-mail;
requests to be added to the daily or weekly distribution lists
may be sent to "[log in to unmask]".
....
end of Part 3
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