I

II

listed in its appendices, and any exploitation of wild fauna specified shall be regulated in order to keep the populations out of danger14

. However, the Bern Convention’s applicability

to seals in the Arctic is limited. Of the European seal hunting nations, only Norway has ratified the Convention. Russia has not signed the Bern Convention. Greenland, although a part of Denmark, is not part of the European Commission and is not committed by the legislation15

. With a focus on animal welfare, in 2010 the EU is putting a ban on all imports of

seal products with the exception of products “derived from hunts traditionally conducted by Inuit and other Indigenous communities and which contribute to their subsistence”16

.

In the USA the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) limits hunting of marine mammals to Alaska Natives who may take seals for subsistence use and for the production of authentic native handicrafts, which may then be sold. MMPA prohibits all other consumptive use of marine mammals.

RELEVANCE OF MULTI-LATERAL ENVIRONMENTAL AGREEMENTS 69