Tuna
By SCOTT THURBER
Pacific News Service
THE AMERICAN tuna indus-
try is gearing up for an
intense congressional battle in
January. But porpoises - not
tuna - will be on center stage.
Porpoises hit the news in ear-
ly November when two federal
courts in California suddenly
halted mass-scale tuna fishing
practices that have accidental-
ly killed up to 300,000 porpoises
annually, ruling that the indus-
try had already killed its quota
of 78,000 porpoises in 1976.
But the tuna industry's real
headache is an earlier federal
court ruling that as of January
1 will permanently ban the con-
troversial fishing methods -
known as "purse seining" - un-
less the industry complies with
a 1972 law designed to save por-
poises from eventual extinction.
That law, the Marine Mam-
mal Protection Act, mandated
that the industry improve its
technology so as to reduce the
incidental porpoise "take" dur-
ing tuna fishing to "insignifi-
cant levels approaching a zero
mortality and r serious injury
rate." .
"We'll make every effort pos-
industry
must si
t -
I
rop tuige porpois
e
kill
sible this coming year to see ;
that the law is changed," says1
Manuel Silva, president of, the ;
American Tunaboat Assoc.
(ATA), a San Diego-based group
that represents most of the
more than 140 big boats i- In
volved in the controversy.
SILVA CONTENDS that strict
adherence to the court order
would be "catastrophic" finan-
cially and predicts that it would
mean the end of the Southern1
California-based tuna fleet. I
The tuna industry will urge,
Congress to amend the 1972 act
to allow porpoise kills at the
"lowest possible level consistent
with current technology."
Meanwhile, conse r v a t i o n;
groups are already mustering
forces for a public-arousal cam-'
paign to preserve the ban.
"We expect some real heavy
pushing by the industry in Jan-
uary," said an official of Proj-
ect Jonah, a California-based
organization that has been al
leader in the porpoise-protec-l
tion campaign. "Obviously, the;
fleet will want to go out as
soon as possible. So we want
to marshal our forces-do what
we can to prevent any such
amendment."
The court-halted fishing tech-
nique involves the use of so- unceremoniously back into the lative oversight hearings, a top tect the porpoises (and other
phisticated, multi-million dollar sea. Ford administration official con- mammals) - not to achieve
"purse-seining" vessels to catch With an average length of ceded that several species of a "balance of equities" be-,
yellowfin tuna that follow about six feet, porpoises-close- porpoise may now be threat- tween the mammals and the
schools of porpoises and feed ly related to and usually con- ened with extinction because of fishing industry.
on their leftovers. In industry sidered synonymous with dol- purse-seine tuna fishing. In light of what Judge Rich-
parlance, it's called "fishing on phins - are among the most But, Dr. Robert White contend- ey called the NMFS' "contin-
porpoise." intelligent of mammals. Por- ed, the tuna industry itself: ued failure" to obey the law,j
YELLOWFIN TUNA are poises and dolphins can com-I could become an endangered Richey decided that "the only
caught mostly in the eastern municate among themselves species if the law isn't chang- appropriate relief at this hime'
Pacific, off South America, and and - to a limited but grow- ed. is to stop completely the inci-
marketed here as "light meat ing degree - even with hu- Dr. White is director of the dental killing of porpoise un-
tuna." The yellowfin comprise mans. National Oceanic and Atmo- less and until" the government
60 per cent of the annual U.S. THEIR STRONG SENSE of spheric Admin. (NOAA), which proves "that such killing is not:
catch, and 60 per cent of the family and herd, and their curi- includes the National Marine to the disadvantage of the por-:
yellowfin are caught by purse- osity and friendliness toward Fisheries Service (NMFS). poise."
seiners. boaters, leave them especially These agencies and the parent The appellate court in Wash-1
When a herd of porpoises is susceptible to purse-seine tuna Department of Commerce were ington, D.C., upheld Richey on
spotted, the seiner sends out fishing. the principal defendants in the August 6, though it delayed im-
speedboats that "herd" the por- The most common alterna- lawsuit that produced the purse-1 plementation of the order un-
poises into a compact bunch. tive to purse-seining is the seine ban. til Jan. 1, 1977.
Then a skiff is dropped, hold- "long-line"-an extremely long THE COURT DECISION, The NMFS subsequently set
ing one end of the net. fishing line to which a large handed down last May 11 by the 1976 porpoise mortality quo-:
It follows the big ship in a number of baited subsidiary U.S. District Judge Charles ta of 78,000 that led federal:
tightening circle around the por- lines are attached. Richey in Washington, D.C., courts in San Diego and San!
-poises (and tuna). Once the net This technique, used by the ruled in favor of conservation Francisco November 4 and 10
is "set," its top is drawn tight Japanese (who catch much groups that had challenged the to rule the quota had been
like the top of a drawstring more tuna than the U.S.) and government's handling of the filled and purse-seining must'
purse, trapping both the sought- -by small, independent U.S. tuna 1972 protection law. Richey end for the rest of the year.
after tuna and the unwanted fishermen who can't afford ex- said the NOAA, NMFS and the ATA PRESIDENT Silva said
porpoises. pensive purse - seine vessels, Commerce Department had after the November 10 decision
When the catch is hauled doesn't harm the porpoise. But "consistently misinterpreted" ; that improvements in gear and
aboard, the tuna are sorted out the giant tuna companies con- the law's "general mandate." procedures have cut the por-|
and the porpoised =- many bad- tend bait fishing isn't as effici- The court decision emphasized poise kill by 50 per cent in
ly maimed, many already dead ent as purse-seining. 'that the intent of Congress, in the last two years alone. Re-
from suffocation - are dumped In testimony at recent legis- approving the law, was to pro- search and experimentation are
i
k
}
I
i"
1.
.
continuing, he said but will of porpoises through December
cease if the "zero mortality" 1975, the NMS granted the
provisions of the law remain permit. The agency conceded
in effect. it was ignorant of total popu-
Silva cited use of the so-call- lations, optimum sustainable
ed "Medina panel" in purse- populations and the impact of
seine nets - a fine mesh that its proposed regulations on the
won't entrap the snout of the populations of porpoises and oth-
porpoises. The whole panel is er affected marine animals.
dipped below the surface when Then, in August 1975, the ATA
the boat slows down and re- sought renewal of its general
verses, easing the escape of permit, estimating a 1976 por-
the mammal, poise mortality of 85,060. De-
But Silva conceded that the spite a storm of protest from
porpoise kill is still far above: conservationists, the t NMFS
the "zero mortality" level, again issued the permit, using
which was supposed to oe a range of 55,000-110,000 por-
achieved by 1974. The 1972 pro- poises as a quota.
tection law said that after the It said kills in that range
end of the grace period, fish- would, "with reasonable assur-
ing on porpoise was to be con- ance, enable the principal
tinued only with permits is- stocks of porpoise toincrease
sued under strict government in size." The independent Ma-
regulations. , rine Mammal Commission, how-
Industry spokesmen had as- ever, said it had "no basis for
sured the bill's backers in 1972 confidence that any number
committee hearings that new above zero" would allow the
equipment and techniques were species to increase.
even then being refined and
't
would make fishing on porpoise,
compatible with minimal dam-
age to the mammals.
BUT WHEN THE ATA subse-,
quently applied for a generalI
permit allowing its members!
to take an unlimited number
Scott Thurber is a San Fran-
cisco - based freelancer who
specializes in. environmental af-
fairs. le has also written about
the 'Saie the Whales' move-
ment.
Eighty-Seven Years of Editorial Freedom
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Friday, November 19,, 1976 News Phone: 764-0552
Ralph's Universe
by Tom Stevens
4
/Y _ ., - ' j
i £
I 1 Fl
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
I
TN AT WOLD BE
INEETIG0
pNA BRAFS
AFTER SENDTIN'G AWAY rRRS'OME DNA, RALPH-
MIYE5 IT WinITOANOLA AND EATS ONE
-SPOON VUGL.
It's been a long time, Bo,
and we can smell the roses
CL4
f1 ,
-
i
WILL IT BE RED ROSES for the
Blue gridders, or just some
more mourning blues.
This morning, 54 football players
and their coaches left here for Co-
lumbus, Ohio,, to represent Michigan
in what will be one of the most
watched, talked about and hotly con-
tested football games of the year.
It's been five long years since the
Wolverines won one of these games,
and ten years since they left Ohio
victorious.
We hope this year'is different. But
we can't guarantee it will be.
Just like our last major distraction,
the presidential election, this one
remains too close to call. Michigan's
offense and OSU's defense seem bal-
anced, as do the Wolverine -defense
and the Buckeye-offense.
UNFORTUNATELY, should Michi-
gan lose, people may vent more cri-
ticism than the team .deserves. All
the pre-season publicity and the rash
of routs against lesser non-confer-
Business Staff
Beth Friedman ... ... .Business Manager
Deborah Dreyfuss .........Operations Manager
Kathleen Mulhern ... Assistant Adv. Coordinator
David 'Harlan ... ,........Finance Manager
Don Simpson ..Sales Manager
Pete Peterson .... .....Advertising Coordinator
Cassle St. Clair ... ....Circulation Manager
Beth SBtratlord .............Circulation Director
ence opponents may have raised ex-
pectations unreasonably high.'
It's like going to a movie you've
heard praised so much, that it can't'
possibly live up to your lofty expecta-
tions, no matter how good it is. But
that doesn't mean it can't win an
Oscar.
Similarly, the Wolverines have a
solid chance at winning tomorrow's
game and keeping the Buckeyes out
of California for a change.
But it doesn't really matter who
wins the game. Michigan fans
shouldn't take the result too serious-
ly, no matter which way it goes. As
far as the game is concerned, what's
important is not the final score, but
whether the team plays up to its po-
tential.
There are more imporant things inI
life than football, as a glance at the
page will show. But that won't stop us
from screaming "Go Blue!"
Win or lose, we're behind the WolN'
verines. If they do falter, it almost
won't certainly come from a lack of
effort.
TODAY'S STAFF:
News: Elaine Fletcher, Rob Holmes,
George Lobsenz, Bob Rosenbaum,
Jim Tobin, Bill Turque, Ann Marie
Schiavi
Editorial Page: Rob Meachum, To m
Stevens, Rich Lerner, Bill Stieg, Rick
Bonino
Arts Page: Lois Josimovich.
Photo Technician: Andy Freeberg
Carter's economic policies
can't help but create jobs
for women, teens, everyone
By M. B. DILLON
THOUGH MANY ARE skepti-
cal of Carter's economic
policies, preferring to bask in
Republican economic conserva-
tism, every American, especial-
ly unemployed women and
blacks, stands to benefit' during
the coming administration as
more jobs are likely to become
available.
As of September, 1976, blacks
comprised a dreadful 12.7 per
cent of the unemployed. Only
teenagers surpassed them with
18.6 per cent. Behind blacks fell
women, accountable for 7.5 per
cent of the nation's unemployed,
but 36 per cent of the nation's
work force.
Carter favors government job
programs in the form of subsi-
dies to companies to encourage
hiring en-route to his goal of
4.5 per cent unemployment. (A
decrease of more than 3 per
cent from September figures.)
This can only help the econ-
ony by decreasing the
ployment costs the U.S.
(every 1 per cent of the
ployed costs $18 billion
As long as ncrea
numbers of U7o
unem-
faces
unem-'
as more of the jobless will
off of the streets, working.
be
and
teenagers
jobs, more jobs3
be created for t
Overall economic
icy will not reined'
sitniation.
tax revenues and increas
employment insurance ben
In addition, crime and t
cay of our cities will de
in lost AS LONG AS increasing num-
bers of women and teenagers
seek jobs, more jobs must be
created for them. Overall eco-
sing nomic policy will not remedy
the situation. Targeted pro-
omen grams are necessary. Finally,
under Carter, hope exists that
seek these may come about.
Incidents like the recent sense-
must less murder of a Farmington
u ills man outside Olympia Sta-
dium by a 17-year-old black
hem. youth spotlights the urgent need
for such programs. This youth
POl- so desperately needed the
dead man's four dollars that a
y the Farmington woman is now a
widow. Her life will never be
the same.
Our apathy and inactivity con-
cerning such tragedy is sicken-
ed un-ing. A 45-second treatment of
ed n-the story on the evening news
nefits. -filters into our living rooms and
he . de- appalls us, but soon our atten-
crease tion turns to swine flu vaccina-
mage tions-.
Unemployment is a grave is-
sue, not just an election issue.
It is spurring the decay of our
society. The sloth of the past
administration has proved intol-
erable.
Hill, Carter may well be criticized,
but his conviction that unrem-
d Hill, ployment must decrease is com-
mendable. He'll need coopera-
Bldg., tion from Congress, business
and labor. We need Carter's
State changes.
M. B. Dillon is a Daily staff
writer.
Perspective
by W. L. SCHELLER
IN JUNE, 1967 Luis Jose Monge became the last man to be
executed in the United States, when he died in the Colorado
gas chamber. Now nine and a, half years later death seems im-
minent for two men: Gary Gilmore of Utah and Robert White of
Texas. Gilmore was originally sentenced to face the firing squad
thi, past Monday, though pending a meeting of the board of par-
dons and his attempted suicide it has been delayed. White will
sit in the electric chair on December 10.
The question of capital punishment has finally come to the
ultimate test. The Supreme Court has declared it legal and now
it is to be carried out for the first time since the sixties. The basic
questions still remains, however. Should we have capital punish-
ment? And if so, under what circumstances?
The death penalty has been used since time immemorial to
punish a variety of crimes, ranging from criticizing the church
to murder. The debate on the death penalty has centered around
the questions of whether or not it is cruel or unusual punishment
and also whether or not it serves as a deterrent to crime.
MURDER IS THE crime most often associated with the death
penalty. Many murders are crimes of passion, such as the killing
of a spouse. Other murders stem from sheer greed and the love
of money or power. When speaking of deterrent power, this sec-
ond type of murder is what should be considered. This includes
such things as contract murders and assassination. Evidence is
conflicting as to the effectiveness of capital punishment as a de-
terrent.
The one area that seems to have been neglected is using capi-
tal punishment as the penalty"for a crime. Killing another person,
out of greed especially, is the greatest infringement on their rights,
their right to life. Should someone who has taken the life of
others out of sheer greed be allowed to continue exercising his
right to life?
There are certain crimes which should warrant the death
penalty. They are: premeditated murder, killing apolice officer,
rape and acts of terrorism. These are crimes that take away the
utmost of the victims rights and warrant the severest punishment
to the individuals who commit them.
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT IS neither cruel nor unusual punish-
ment but a relevant penalty for crimes which make our world
increasingly viblent and unsafe for law abiding people to live in.
To be cruel or unusual it would have to mean that the severest
penalty was being invoked for the most minor crimes.
There are people in this world who are a danger to all. They
kill rape and terrorize the populace. Should they be allowed to
continue existing to the detriment of others? The death penalty
as exercised in this' country is not arbitrary, in compliance with the
Supreme Court's rulings, and is pronounced only after a jury
trial. And it is usually followed by many appeals.
The time for the death penalty has returned. The rights of the
victims cannot be ignored and those who will commit such acts
must pay the price.
Even the two men currently facing execution consider their
sentences fair.
Letters:
Contact your reps.
Sen. Phillip Hart (Dem.), 253 Russell Bldg., Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515.
Sen. Robert Griffin (Rep.), 353 Russell Bldg., Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515.
Rep. Marvin Esch (Rep.), 2353 Rayburn Bldg., Capito
Washington, D.C. 20515.
Sen. Gilbert Bursley (Rep.), Senate, State CapitolI
Lansing, MI 48933
Rep. Perry Bullard (Dem.), House of Representatives,
Capitol Bldg., Lansing, MI 48933.
.4 . . } ':. }:" .. . . . . . . . . . ..ewx;; t,>: :
Kl I5-AT
Ki 'IV .
on defecating
Why do they lock the toilet pa-
per dispensers? Is someone go-
I