Peter Romero, Acting United States Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, and Canadas Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Trade, George Haynal, exchanged instruments of ratification during President Clintons visit to Canada. The amendments to the Migratory Bird Convention, which were approved by the U.S. Senate in 1997 and the Canadian government in 1995, will allow the United States and Canada to recognize and cooperatively manage subsistence hunts with native peoples. Many indigenous peoples in the far North depend on traditional subsistence hunting for their survival, and such hunting is guaranteed by the Canadian Constitution and protected by established U.S. policy.
"The implementation of these amendments is an important step forward in our relationships with native and indigenous peoples, and in the conservation of these priceless resources. While protecting a centuries-old way of life, they also give native peoples their rightful voice in the management process and recognize their crucial role as stewards of countless migratory bird populations," said Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt.
"This, the latest step in a long process, takes us closer to making the Migratory Birds Convention reflect and respect existing aboriginal and treaty rights while ensuring the conservation of migratory birds. We will be better able to continue the meaningful partnerships which we have developed with aboriginal peoples and will be better able to work with them in continued migratory bird conservation," said Canadian Environment Minister David Anderson.
The Migratory Bird Convention with Canada, signed in 1916, is North Americas oldest international wildlife conservation pact. The United States and Mexico signed a similar treaty in 1936. The treaties provide protection for all species of migratory birds in North America, while permitting regulated hunting seasons for game birds.
By barring all migratory bird hunting between March 10 and September 1, the original treaties did not adequately take into account traditional harvests of migratory birds by northern indigenous peoples during the spring and summer months. These harvests have gone on for centuries and continued despite the treaty prohibitions. In many cases, the birds are a vital food source for northern indigenous peoples of Canada and Alaska.
"The Service has long recognized the need to include subsistence hunting in our migratory bird planning process, and to give indigenous communities a voice in protecting the resources on which they depend," said Service Director Jamie Rappaport Clark. "These amendments reflect years of negotiations, and are a testimony to the commitment of both nations to migratory bird conservation."
Were the convention not amended, the treaty would probably have to be abrogated because the Canadian Constitution guarantees a legal harvest for Canadian aboriginal peoples. The Senate also approved corresponding amendments to the treaty with Mexico in 1997 that allow subsistence harvest of ducks and their eggs by indigenous peoples in Alaska.
Because no new harvests are being established, biologists expect the amendments to have little or no impact on either the number of birds flying south or the abundance of game species. In fact, the amendments should improve management of these birds by creating a partnership with indigenous peoples, who are stewards of some of the most important habitat in the world.
The amendments to the migratory bird treaties also:
-Increase information exchanges and data collection among the three countries and Aboriginal and indigenous peoples, expanding the scientific base for migratory bird management.
-Update certain parts of the treaties including the species list and outdated protection measures;
-Provide a forum whereby the countries can work cooperatively to resolve migratory bird problems in a manner consistent with the principles underlying the treaties and, if necessary, design special actions or policies to conserve and protect species of concern.
While the amendments provide for a legal spring and summer harvest for some far northern peoples, the Canadian and American governments are required to ensure this migratory bird harvest is conducted in accordance with conservation principles. The United States will establish specific harvest regulations for spring and summer seasons in cooperation with local and state cooperative management organizations.
The United States will continue to develop the necessary regulatory processes to ensure the amendments are properly implemented. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will rely on authority under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 to establish subsistence harvest seasons in Alaska. The public will have ample opportunity to comment on regulations. The Service is currently considering various methods of establishing cooperative management bodies comprising indigenous inhabitants of Alaska and state and Service officials to recommend annual regulations for the hunts.
As indicated in a Federal Register Notice published on August 31, the Service expects to have the management bodies in place by next year, and specific hunting regulations implemented by 2001. Until that time, the Service will rely on existing policy, established in 1988 and updated in 1999, allowing subsistence harvest compatible with sustainable conservation.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish and wildlife and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprised of more than 500 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fish and wildlife management offices, and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
Fact Sheet
Protocol to the 1916 Migratory Bird Treaty
Background: The United States and Canada signed a protocol to the 1916 Migratory Bird Treaty in December, 1995. The U.S. Senate gave its advice and consent to the protocol on October 23, 1997.
The protocol amends the 1916 Convention to provide for a traditional spring and summer hunt of migratory birds protected under the convention by Aboriginal peoples of Canada and indigenous peoples of Alaska. The protocol is designed to improve the conservation of migratory birds by allowing for the effective regulation of this hunt. For the United States, it provides for a consultative management process on hunting regulations which involves the indigenous communities in Alaska. For Canada, it brings the Migratory Bird Treaty into conformance with its constitution and with the aboriginal and treaty rights of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada.
Questions and Answers about the protocol
Why are changes to the Migratory Bird Treaty needed?
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which charges the Service with setting and enforcing regulations for all covered migratory bird species, requires that the regulations must be consistent with the provisions of the 1916 Canada Treaty, which prohibits hunting between March 10 and September 1.This prohibition does not recognize the fact that indigenous and aboriginal peoples in Alaska and northern Canada traditionally depend on migratory bird hunting when the birds arrive in the spring. In 1986, the Service began a rulemaking process to permit and regulate subsistence hunting for migratory birds in Alaska. The rulemaking was halted by an October 9, 1987, ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that any regulations for subsistence hunting of migratory birds must be in accordance with the 1916 treaty signed with Canada and implemented by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Following the court decision, the Service worked toward legalizing subsistence harvest in Alaska during the closed season by proposing amendments to the Canada Treaty and the Mexico Treaty. After extensive negotiations with both Canada and Mexico, protocols were signed with both nations in 1995.
Why has it taken so long to implement the protocol?
The protocol amended a treaty that had been in effect for eight decades, and questions about the potential need for implementing legislation and/or regulations delayed the Presidents signature until September 9, 1999.
How has the Service treated subsistence hunting in the past?
Except in Alaska, the Service has always strictly enforced the prohibitions against taking migratory birds during closed seasons; that is, during those times of year outside the hunting seasons established in the annual hunting regulations. The Service has recognized for many years that residents of certain rural areas in Alaska depend on waterfowl and some other migratory birds as customary and traditional sources of food, primarily during spring and early summer. Because of this long established dependence, the Service generally has exercised its discretion to not strictly enforce the closed season in these areas provided that subsistence harvest of a particular species will not adversely affect its populations and that birds are not wasted. The Service recognizes the need for conservation measures to protect those species where population levels are of concern or are most susceptible to declines, and the protocols put in place a process to address those species.
How will the protocol affect sport hunting in the lower 48 states and southern Canada?
There should be no significant change in hunting opportunities. Amendment of the Convention would simply legalize and provide for the management and monitoring of an existing spring/summer harvest. It will not initiate a new harvest.
What is the status of the protocol negotiated with Mexico?
In 1936, the United States and Mexico signed the U.S.-Mexico Convention for the Protection of Migratory Birds and Game Mammals, similar to the 1916 treaty with Canada. The Mexico Treaty established a closed season for ducks from March 10 to September 1. A protocol was negotiated with Mexico that received the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate in October of 1997. The protocol permits the harvest of wild ducks and their eggs by the indigenous peoples of Alaska during otherwise closed seasons, provided that the harvest is for personal use only and does not jeopardize the populations of any species. The United States and Mexico hope to exchange instruments of ratification for the protocol in the near future.
When will the treaty amendments take effect?
The amendments will take effect as soon as the instruments of ratification have been exchanged by representatives of the two countries on October 7. Embedded in the Protocol under Article VI is the provision which states that "This Protocol shall enter into force on the date the Parties exchange instruments of ratification." The protocol allows regulations to be written opening the season on subsistence harvest of migratory birds between March 10 and September 1. The process to develop regulations is currently in progress and is expected to result in the establishment of management bodies in 2000 and specific hunting regulations in 2001.
How will indigenous and native peoples be involved in developing subsistence harvest regulations?
The Protocol mandates that subsistence users will have an effective and meaningful role in the development and implementation of subsistence regulations through management bodies. The Service is currently considering various methods of establishing cooperative management bodies comprising indigenous inhabitants of Alaska and state and Service officials to recommend annual regulations for the hunts. These management bodies will be separate from the existing Federal Subsistence Regional Advisory Councils. When an advisory process is proposed, the Service will publish a notice in the Federal Register and seek public comment.
Who will be eligible to participate in subsistence harvests?
The protocol establishes eligibility for the "indigenous inhabitants of Alaska." Indigenous inhabitants are defined as permanent residents of a village within a subsistence harvest area, regardless of race. Subsistence harvest areas are established to include most village areas within the Alaska Peninsula, Kodiak Archipelago, the Aleutian Islands, and areas north and west of the Alaska Range. Areas that would generally not qualify include the Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna and Fairbanks North Star Boroughs, The Kenai Peninsula roaded area, the Gulf of Alaska roaded area, and Southeast Alaska. Exceptions to these areas can be made through a deliberative process which includes the management bodies established by the Service.
What uses will be permitted for birds and eggs under the protocol?
The protocol permits the harvesting of birds, nests and eggs that are not threatened, endangered or otherwise of concern due to population declines, for personal consumption. The protocol also allows the taking of birds, nests and eggs for scientific, educational, religious or other purposes, so long as they are consistent with the purposes of the treaty and a permit has been obtained from the Service.
What will the Service policy be until subsistence harvest regulations are written?
The Service will continue to exercise discretion in its enforcement of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and will not strictly enforce the closed season in rural areas in Alaska where people have long relied on locally harvested waterfowl for food during spring and summer. This policy will remain in effect, provided that subsistence harvest of a particular species will not affect its populations. This policy also prohibits the wasting of any migratory bird, the use of private or charter aircraft to assist hunting of any migratory bird, and prohibits possession or use of lead shot while hunting waterfowl. The enforcement policy applies only during the closed season, between March 10 and September 1. In areas other than those described above, the Service will enforce the closed season and all other regulations for hunting migratory birds from September 1 to March 10 as throughout the rest of the nation.
The Service recognizes that among subsistence users there is a wide range in the level of understanding of the impacts of spring and summer harvest of waterfowl and the need to reduce mortality, especially when populations become depressed. The Service will continue educational efforts to expand the understanding of this relationship and will consider the varying levels of understanding when carrying out enforcement efforts on a statewide basis.
How will threatened and endangered migratory bird species in Alaska be affected by a subsistence harvest?
Service enforcement efforts in Alaska during the closed season will concentrate on violations that have the most serious impacts on threatened and endangered migratory bird populations, as well as migratory bird populations in decline. The Service will give special attention to the protection of spectacled and Stellers eiders, cackling Canada geese, emperor geese, Pacific white-fronted geese, and black brant. These species have suffered severe population declines in recent years and need special protection. The following provisions will be strictly enforced:
-No taking of spectacled or Stellers eiders at any time
-No taking of emperor geese at any time
-No taking of cackling Canada geese or black brant during the nesting, brood-rearing, and flightless period
-No taking of Pacific white-fronted geese, in the coastal areas of western Alaska south of Norton Sound, during the nesting, brood-rearing, and flightless periods
-No taking of the eggs of spectacled or Stellers eiders, emperor geese, cackling Canada geese or black brant
Although all waterfowl hunters in Alaska have been required to use non-toxic shot since 1991, this has not been an enforcement priority in the past with regard to subsistence hunting. However, recent studies have confirmed lead shot poisoning in spectacled eiders and other species of waterfowl harvested by subsistence hunters in Alaska. Therefore anyone possessing lead shot while waterfowl hunting will be subject to enforcement action, regardless of time or place.
What other amendments does the protocol make to the treaty?
For Canada, a process for this spring/summer hunt will be based upon the conservation provisions within existing and developing land claims agreements and treaties. In addition, the amendments provide for regulating the existing murre hunt in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The amendments provide a provision that each country will use its authority to protect and conserve habitats essential to migratory bird populations. This includes preventing damage resulting from pollution; controlling the importation of live animals and plants which could be hazardous to birds; and controlling the introduction of live animals and plants which could disturb the ecological balance of unique environments.
The amendments sets out a formal consultation process by which the U.S. and Canada agree to meet regularly to review the progress of implementation of the convention and any other related issues.
Articles that dealt with protection of specific species such as wood ducks (depleted early in this century) deemed to be unnecessary and out-of-date were deleted and replaced with language that requires the governments to review the progress of the treatys implementation on a regular basis. In addition, Article IV, based on the U.S.- Japan Migratory Bird Convention, is a recognition of the important role habitat protection plays in the maintenance of migratory bird populations.
