成人X站

MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Tribe’s request to hunt whales under public scrutiny in Seattle

Apr 27, 2015, 7:36 AM | Updated: 10:26 pm

A gray whale surfaces in the Pacific Ocean waters March 3, 2015. (AP)...

A gray whale surfaces in the Pacific Ocean waters March 3, 2015. (AP)

(AP)

The public will weigh in on a request that has drawn much controversy.

The Makah Tribe’s request to hunt gray whales was the focus of a Seattle public meeting Monday night.

It’s a topic that has drawn criticism since the tribe sought a waiver to the Endangered Species Act more than 10 years ago.

“There’s a lot of interest in this,” said NOAA Fisheries spokesman Michael Milstein. “Many have serious concerns and others feel strongly about the Tribe’s treaty right to hunt whales.”

The government issued a draft environmental statement March 6. Several options are being considered, which includes allowing the Tribe to kill up to five whale per year, or denying the request altogether, Milstein said.

“We want to hear more about what people have to say,” he said.

The Makah tribe hunted whales for more than 1,500 years before halting whaling in the 1920’s after commercial hunting dramatically reduced the eastern North Pacific gray whale population, according to NOAA.

The tribe was granted permission in 1997 to resume hunting after the whales were removed from the endangered species list, and successfully killed a single whale in 1999. But the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the permitted hunt and ruled in favor of several animal rights groups that sued the government. They argued the hunts violated the Marine Mammal Protection act, which prohibits the taking of marine mammals.

The tribe applied for a waiver of the MMPA and the government launched a new EIS in 2006, but the process soon stalled out based on new research.

A new environmental impact statement was crafted after new information emerged over sub-groups of the whales that need protection. But researched have determined the eastern north Pacific gray whale population is healthy, thanks to the Marine Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act.

The Seattle meeting was the first of two scheduled in April. NOAA will hold a three-hour meeting in Port Angeles on April 29 in the Vern Burton Memorial Community Center.

MyNorthwest News

travis decker sighting idaho woods...

MyNorthwest Staff

Possible Travis Decker sighting reported in Idaho woods, U.S. Marshals investigating

The U.S. Marshals Service is investigating a possible sighting of Travis Decker, the man accused of kidnapping and killing his three young daughters near Leavenworth, in the woods of Idaho.

37 minutes ago

texas flash flood wa...

Ted Buehner

Texas flash flood tragedy: What Western WA must learn before it’s too late

The catastrophic Texas flash flood along the Guadalupe River in the Hill Country outside of San Antonio is simply heartbreaking. What can be learned and applied here in Western Washington?

54 minutes ago

Photo: A law enforcement vehicle's lights....

成人X站7 News Staff

One dead, five injured in Sedro-Woolley shooting

The Sedro-Woolley Police Department (SWPD) says one person has died, and five were injured in a shooting on Saturday night.

16 hours ago

fireworks injured...

成人X站 Newsradio Newsdesk

Harborview confirms 47 people injured from fireworks-related incidents

Forty-seven people suffered injuries related to fireworks incidents over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, medical staff with Harborview Medical Center confirmed.

18 hours ago

One of two homes that burned in a two-alarm fire in northeast Tacoma Saturday evening. (Photo: Taco...

Tom Brock

Two homes, historic warehouse burn in separate two-alarm fires in Tacoma

Tacoma firefighters battled two, separate, two-alarm fires on Saturday and they say one of them was started by people illegally setting off fireworks.

19 hours ago

fireworks hand...

成人X站 7 News Staff

Holiday fireworks accident in Snohomish results in man losing his hand

A man was rushed to the hospital with injuries to his hand after a fireworks accident in Snohomish County.

23 hours ago

Tribe’s request to hunt whales under public scrutiny in Seattle