belugawhale_depleted_petition2014.pdf (768.31 KB)
Sakhalin Bay-Amur River Beluga Whales, Notice of Petition Availability.pdf (221.81 KB)
Notice of 60-day Petition Sakhalin Bay Beluga Whales.pdf (199.7 KB)
Notice of 60-day petition finding, extension of public comment period.pdf (173.23 KB)
The attached documents all concern the Petition to Designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River Stock of Beluga Whales under the MMPA filed by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), Cetacean Society International, and Earth Island Institute to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, through the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
The first document from the Federal Register is the official notice of the petition and its availability for public review.
NMFS has received a petition to "designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River stock of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) as a depleted stock under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA)." In accordance with the MMPA, NMFS announces the receipt of the petition and its availability for public review and is soliciting comments on the petition.
Based on that original petition, a notice was then published in the Federal Register entitled, "Petition To Designate Sakhalin Bay- Amur River Beluga Whales Stock as Depleted Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act; Finding." The notice summary states:
NMFS received a petition to "designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River stock of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) as a depleted stock under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA)." NMFS finds that the petition presents substantial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted and will initiate a status review promptly. NMFS solicits information from the public that may contribute to the status review.
Subsequently, the NMFS issued the following notice extending the public comment period:
NMFS received a petition to "designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River stock of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) as a depleted stock under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). On August 1, 2014, NMFS announced that the petition presented substantial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted and that NMFS would initiate a status review promptly. NMFS also solicited information from the public that may contribute to the status review. NMFS is extending the comment period for 30 days.