Fish and Fishing - The Federal Government's Role In The Conservation Of Fish And Wildlife

The federal government has played an extensive role in working to conserve the habitats of fish and wildlife. Conservation became an important theme in the late nineteenth century, when people began to believe that wildlife and wild places should be protected not only for utilitarian reasons but because they had their own intrinsic value and were important national resources. Influenced by the writings of HENRY DAVID THOREAU and following the lead of wildlife advocates such as John Muir, the federal government began to establish national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges. One of the first wildlife refuges was created by President BENJAMIN HARRISON in 1892 when he reserved Afognak Island, in Alaska, for the protection and preservation of "salmon and other fish and sea animals and other animals and birds" (Proclamation No. 39, 27 Stat. 1052). Though most of the refuges established were specifically designed for waterfowl and fur-bearing species, the need to protect fish habitats was recognized in 1972 when Congress passed the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (16U.S.C.A. §§ 1431–1445). This act authorizes the secretary of commerce, with the approval of the president, to designate as marine sanctuaries areas of the Great Lakes and the oceans, extending out to the edge of the continental shelf, when the secretary determines that that action is necessary for the purpose of preserving or restoring such areas for their conservation, recreational, ecological, or esthetic values. Fish and wildlife refuges are administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service, which is housed in the Department of Interior.

In addition to establishing wildlife refuges and sanctuaries, the federal government provides states with financial assistance to fund projects pertaining to fish. This funding was created by the Federal Aid in Fish Restoration Act (16 U.S.C.A. § 777-777k), more commonly known as the Dingell-Johnson Act, which was passed in 1950. This act directs that funds derived from the federal excise tax on fishing rods, creels, reels, and artificial lures, baits, and flies be annually apportioned among the states, 40 percent on the basis of geographic area and 60 percent on the basis of the number of persons holding paid fishing licenses. These funds can be used by the states for "fish restoration and management projects" or, since 1970, for "comprehensive fish and wildlife resource management plans." The Dingell-Johnson Act specifies that its provisions are to apply only to "fish which have material value in connection with sport or recreation in the marine and/or fresh waters of the United States." With the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980 (16 U.S.C.A. §§ 2901–2911), commonly referred to as the Nongame Act, a similar funding program was provided for the protection of nongame fish and wildlife. The FWS is responsible for maintaining and administering these trust funds.

The most extensive federal efforts to protect endangered fish and wildlife species have been generated through the ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT of 1973 (16 U.S.C.A. §§ 1531–1543). The Endangered Species Act provides much broader coverage than did previous wildlife legislation, defining the fish or wildlife to be protected as including "any member of the animal kingdom," and expressing the goal of preserving plant life as well. The Endangered Species Act also differs from previous wildlife laws in that it is founded not on a primarily utilitarian view of wildlife but on the philosophy that wildlife has intrinsic value for the nation and its citizens. The act declares, for example, that endangered wildlife

Fishermen weigh a catch of redfish. Federal fisheries management is a responsibility of the National Marine Fisheries Service.
PHOTOGRAPH BY ALLEN M. SHIMADA, NMFS

"are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational, and scientific value to the Nation and its people."