United States Code/Title 16/Chapter 31

The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) of 1972 was the first article of legislation to call specifically for an ecosystem approach to natural resource management and conservation. MMPA prohibits the taking of marine mammals, and enacts a moratorium on the import, export, and sale of any marine mammal, along with any marine mammal part or product within the United States. It defines "take" as “the act of hunting, killing, capture, and/or harassment of any marine mammal; or, the attempt at such. The MMPA provides for enforcement of its prohibitions, and for the issuance of regulations to implement its legislative goals.

754334United States CodeTitle 16, Chapter 31. Marine Mammal Protectionthe United States Government
Title 16 — Conservation
Chapter 31 — Marine Mammal Protection
Sec. SUBCHAPTER I—GENERALLY
§ 1361 Congressional findings and declaration of policy
§ 1362 Definitions
SUBCHAPTER II—CONSERVATION AND PROTECTION OF MARINE MAMMALS
§ 1371 Moratorium on taking and importing marine mammals and marine mammal products
§ 1372 Prohibitions
§ 1373 Regulations on taking of marine mammals
§ 1374 Permits
§ 1375 Penalties
§ 1375a Use of fines for protection and recovery of manatees, polar bears, sea otters, and walruses
§ 1376 Seizure and forfeiture of cargo
§ 1377 Enforcement
§ 1378 International program
§ 1379 Transfer of management authority
§ 1380 Marine mammal research grants
§ 1381 Commercial fisheries gear development
§ 1382 Regulations and administration
§ 1383 Application to other treaties and conventions
§ 1383a Interim exemption for commercial fisheries
§ 1383b Status review; conservation plans
§ 1384 Authorization of appropriations
§ 1385 Dolphin protection
§ 1386 Stock assessments
§ 1387 Taking of marine mammals incidental to commercial fishing operations
§ 1388 Marine mammal cooperative agreements in Alaska
§ 1389 Pacific Coast Task Force; Gulf of Maine
SUBCHAPTER III—MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION
§ 1401 Establishment
§ 1402 Duties of Commission
§ 1403 Committee of Scientific Advisors on Marine Mammals
§ 1404 Omitted
§ 1405 Coordination with other Federal agencies
§ 1406 Administration
§ 1407 Authorization of appropriations
SUBCHAPTER IV—INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM
§ 1411 Findings and policy
§ 1412 International Dolphin Conservation Program
§ 1413 Regulatory authority of Secretary
§ 1414 Repealed
§ 1414a Research
§ 1415 Reports by Secretary
§ 1416 Permits
§ 1417 Prohibitions
§ 1418 Repealed
SUBCHAPTER V—MARINE MAMMAL HEALTH AND STRANDING RESPONSE
§ 1421 Establishment of Program
§ 1421a Determination; data collection and dissemination
§ 1421b Stranding response agreements
§ 1421c Unusual mortality event response
§ 1421d Unusual mortality event activity funding
§ 1421e Liability
§ 1421f National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank and tissue analysis
§ 1421f-1 John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program
§ 1421g Authorization of appropriations
§ 1421h Definitions
SUBCHAPTER VI—POLAR BEARS
§ 1423 Definitions
§ 1423a Prohibitions
§ 1423b Administration
§ 1423c Cooperative management agreement; authority to delegate enforcement authority
§ 1423d Commission appointments; compensation, travel expenses, and claims
§ 1423e Votes taken by the United States section on matters before the Commission
§ 1423f Implementation of actions taken by the Commission
§ 1423g Application with other subchapters of chapter
§ 1423h Authorization of appropriations

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105).

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