[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 34 (Friday, February 20, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 7910]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-3755]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Doc. No. 040205039-4039-01, I.D. 012804A]


Whaling Provisions: Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling Quotas

AGENCY:  National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notification of aboriginal subsistence whaling quota.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the aboriginal subsistence whaling quota for 
bowhead whales, and other limitations deriving from regulations adopted 
at the 2002 Special Meeting of the International Whaling Commission 
(IWC). For 2004, the quota is 75 bowhead whales struck. This quota and 
other limitations will govern the harvest of bowhead whales by members 
of the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission (AEWC).

DATES: Effective February 20, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service, 1315 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Chris Yates, (301) 713-2322.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Aboriginal subsistence whaling in the United 
States is governed by the Whaling Convention Act (16 U.S.C. 916 et 
seq.). Regulations that implement the Act, found at 50 CFR 230.6, 
require the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to publish, at least 
annually, aboriginal subsistence whaling quotas and any other 
limitations on aboriginal subsistence whaling deriving from regulations 
of the IWC.
    At the 2002 Special Meeting of the IWC, the Commission set quotas 
for aboriginal subsistence use of bowhead whales from the Bering-
Chukchi-Beaufort Seas stock. The bowhead quota was based on a joint 
request by the United States and the Russian Federation, accompanied by 
documentation concerning the needs of two Native groups: Alaska Eskimos 
and Chukotka Natives in the Russian Far East.
    This action by the IWC thus authorized aboriginal subsistence 
whaling by the AEWC for bowhead whales. This aboriginal subsistence 
harvest is conducted in accordance with a cooperative agreement between 
NOAA and the AEWC.
    The IWC set a 5-year block quota of 280 bowhead whales landed. For 
each of the years 2003 through 2007, the number of bowhead whales 
struck may not exceed 67, except that any unused portion of a strike 
quota from any year, including 15 unused strikes from the 1998 through 
2002 quota, may be carried forward. No more than 15 strikes may be 
added to the strike quota for any one year. At the end of the 2003 
harvest, there were 15 unused strikes available for carry-forward, so 
the combined strike quota for 2004 is 82 (67 + 15).
    This arrangement ensures that the total quota of bowhead whales 
landed and struck in 2004 will not exceed the quotas set by the IWC. 
Under an arrangement between the United States and the Russian 
Federation, the Russian natives may use no more than seven strikes, and 
the Alaska Eskimos may use no more than 75 strikes.
    NOAA is assigning 75 strikes to the Alaska Eskimos. The AEWC will 
allocate these strikes among the 10 villages whose cultural and 
subsistence needs have been documented in past requests for bowhead 
quotas from the IWC, and will ensure that its hunters use no more than 
75 strikes.

Other Limitations

    The IWC regulations, as well as the NOAA rule at 50 CFR 230.4(c), 
forbid the taking of calves or any whale accompanied by a calf.
    NOAA rules (at 50 CFR 230.4) contain a number of other prohibitions 
relating to aboriginal subsistence whaling, some of which are 
summarized here. Only licensed whaling captains or crew under the 
control of those captains may engage in whaling. They must follow the 
provisions of the relevant cooperative agreement between NOAA and a 
Native American whaling organization. The aboriginal hunters must have 
adequate crew, supplies, and equipment. They may not receive money for 
participating in the hunt. No person may sell or offer for sale whale 
products from whales taken in the hunt, except for authentic articles 
of Native handicrafts. Captains may not continue to whale after the 
relevant quota is taken, after the season has been closed, or if their 
licenses have been suspended. They may not engage in whaling in a 
wasteful manner.

    Dated: February 13, 2004.
Rebecca Lent,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs
[FR Doc. 04-3755 Filed 2-19-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S