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Write Your Own Comment

Thank you for choosing to craft your own comment in response to Mystic Aquarium’s beluga import permit application.

IMPORTANT: Comments that are personalized and are not "cut & paste" have the potential to carry more weight with the agency.

To help you out, please take a look at our sample passages (below) and feel free to expand on and individualize the wording.

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

Your introduction might choose to begin with your current position and overall experience with marine mammals. A sample could read something like this:

I am a (job title/position) at (name of your zoo/aquarium) and have been a professional animal trainer for __ years. I hold memberships in the following professional organizations: (include any relevant (IMATA, AZA, AMBA, etc.)). I am writing in strong support of Mystic Aquarium’s application for a research permit to safety transport five endangered beluga whales from Marineland in Ontario, Canada to Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut. I have had the opportunity to review the permit application and would like to submit the below comments for consideration.

PART 2: CONTENT SECTION

Below are several sample comments relative to the permit application that might give you inspiration about how to craft your own message.

Mystic Aquarium has the largest beluga habitat in the U.S. and is a global leader in beluga research. This permit will ensure the aquarium can continue its critical, non-invasive beluga research, resulting in positive outcomes for both stable and endangered populations.

An advantage of adding these belugas to the Mystic Aquarium collection is training them to provide biological samples and participate in critical research that will contribute to the management and recovery of threatened beluga populations around the globe. In fact, the three whales currently at Mystic Aquarium already enable the research team to test new technologies that can eventually be transitioned to monitor the health of wild whales. To truth test various studies, Mystic Aquarium requires a larger sample size within its own facility, where its labs and staff are located and where consistent, long-term research can be safely and efficiently conducted.

The five belugas to be imported will be well cared for by a staff of full-time scientists, veterinarians, and marine mammal experts. Mystic Aquarium is uniquely qualified in that it holds a USDA Research License to conduct non-invasive research on its collection of animals. Other beluga holders do not have this license and are therefore limited in the extent and scope of their research.

Given the continued pace of environmental and anthropogenic changes in the Arctic, and the increasing number of threatened beluga populations, it is critical that we do all we can now to ensure the sustainability of belugas. We need to identify causes, measure impacts, and gather important data to help them. Certain studies can only be carried out on animals as addressed above, and it is crucial that Mystic Aquarium continue this research to make strides in beluga research and conservation.

PART 3: CONCLUSION

You might conclude by thanking NOAA for recognizing that marine mammal parks and facilities in the United States provide outstanding care and treatment of the animals in their families, including maintaining healthy habitats suitable to their needs. A sample could read something like this:

I urge you to approve Mystic’s research permit allowing it to secure five beluga whales from Marineland. Only through this approval will we ensure that Mystic remains a global leader in beluga research, and that wild and endangered populations remain a research priority at this renowned aquarium.

IMPORTANT: Feel free to personalize the bullet points above by drawing from your professional experience with marine mammals. Your comments can be maximized by stating your positive observations about the care and management of animals with respect to the proposed regulation changes.

Note: If the link does not work properly on your mobile device, please visit www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA-NMFS-2019-0113 in the search field at the top of the page.