Comment from Julia Chenault

There are many criteria which must be considered to list a species of animal as a threatened or endangered distinct population segment under the Endangered Species Act. Considering that the Act’s implementing regulations define the “substantial information” which must be presented as only needing to lead a “reasonable person to believe that the measure proposed in the petition may be warranted,” and considering that no definition of reasonable is required or given, I would agree with the listed findings of the petition. I also believe that the Northeastern Pacific population of the great white shark should be listed as endangered or threatened. Both petitions presented here offer the information required of them. They suggest that the northeastern Pacific (NEP) population is relatively isolated with regards to breeding with other populations of sharks; therefore, it is all the more important that this population be maintained so that they can continue to help themselves to grow in numbers. Both petitions also state that a main threat to the NEP population of white shark is human activity whether it is through fisheries, contamination of habitat/prey, or hunting (legal & poaching). The only way human activity can be universally monitored and controlled is through regulation by the government. The beliefs of man will never be uniform, and so it must be left up to those regulators to analyze the best interests of all parties involved, both man and animal, and make an informed decision. I believe the 12 month waiting period is too long to wait to make the endangered species designation. With more evidence needed in the area of factors that could cause the extinction of this population of shark such as the contamination of prey or the level of illegal killings, it is a risk to the animal to not at least put some sort of temporary protection over them until further required evidence can be provided.