Browsing by Subject "Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA)"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Open Access
A Comparative Methodology of the Research Permit Process under the NMSA and MMPA
(2021-04-29) Corcoran, Kimberly
Permits for protected species have become a fundamental part of conserving various marine ecosystems. The National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) designates protected marine areas of national importance to prioritize conservation, scientific research, cultural significance and environmental education. Activities that are potentially harmful to the environment are prohibited within designated sanctuaries; however, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has the authority to issue permits authorizing activities that would otherwise be prohibited under NMSA. Each proposed activity must advance the mission of the sanctuary system, which, in the case of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS), includes restoration and research activities. However, several inefficiencies persist within the permit authorization process that can cause significant delays to activities that are aligned with Sanctuary goals. To assess the extent of these inefficiencies, my masters project provides a comparative analysis between the permitting process for research activities under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), another major piece of legislation geared towards marine ecosystem protection. I conducted a series of interviews with permit coordinators, directors and applicants in parallel with a literature review of both Acts. Following this deep dive into the permit process, I made a series of recommendations for NMSA permits to streamline the process. Additionally, as a supplemental part of my master’s project, I worked with NOAA’s Mission: Iconic Reef team to create a StoryMap for their website. This StoryMap will be used to help celebrate the one year anniversary of the Mission: Iconic Reefs Project and their commitment towards furthering the goals of FKNMS through education and stewardship while protecting coral reefs in the Florida Keys.
Open Access
ANALYSIS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE’S POLICIES TOWARD PROTECTED SPECIES
(2004) Shifflett, Scott
After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States has had an increased interest in national defense and military readiness. Current Department of Defense spending has increased substantially over the past year in the areas of national defense and military readiness. Early attempts to weaken the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act within the US House of Representatives were blocked. However, the $400 billion defense appropriation bill, Public Law 108-136, seeks to weaken the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act to improve military readiness and national defense. Section 318 of the defense appropriation bill seeks to weaken the Endangered Species Act by precluding the designation of critical habitat on military installations. Section 319 of the bill seeks to weaken the Marine Mammal Protection Act by allowing the Navy to conduct research and training necessary to national defense even if those activities kill marine mammals. A policy design theory analysis shows that the Department of Defense has two different standards for land and marine species; land based organisms will receive high protection under the law, however, marine based organisms will receive minimal or no protection. The rationale and assumptions of section 318 seem to be sound because of the long running tradition of successes of endangered species management on military installations and the limited inclusion of critical habitat in endangered species management. More research needs to be conducted on the impact of the SURTASS LFA sonar system on marine mammals before the assumptions and rationale of section 319 can be determined to be correct.
Open Access
The Cost of U.S. Cetacean Bycatch Reduction Measures as a Reason for Supporting International Action
(2003) Griffin, Elizabeth
Due to requirements under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA)and the Endangered Species Act (ESA),U.S. fishermen are required to take measures to reduce cetacean bycatch. However, the U.S. imports fisheries products from countries that have significant cetacean bycatch problems which fisherman are not required to mitigate. I examined case studies of the California/Oregon drift gillnet, American lobster and Atlantic cod fisheries to demonstrate the costs of U.S. cetacean bycatch reductions and their economic affect. The cost of cetacean bycatch reduction in the California/Oregon drift gillnet fishery represents 1.9 - 4.5% of the fishery's total ex-vessel value. The annual cost to the lobster fishery is 0.7 - 6.3% of the industry's value and 3.3% - 13.3% of the ex-vessel landings value of an Atlantic cod vessel using sink gillnets is going to cetacean bycatch mitigation. U.S. fishermen face a competitive disadvantage because they have to bear the costs for mitigating cetacean bycatch while their foreign competitors do not. The U.S. is importing products from foreign fisheries with serious bycatch problems. Foreign products are in direct competition with U.S. domestic in which U.S. fishermen have borne substantial costs to mitigate cetacean bycatch. The only way to protect marine mammals and maintain a competitive global fisheries market is to take action on an international level to reduce cetacean bycatch. To do this, influential countries like the U.S. need to support international negotiations and cooperation.