Polar bear commission established to protect them in Alaska and Russia

7/18/06

Washington, D.C.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved a treaty today to protect polar bears from overhunting and other threats.

The bill supports an existing treaty that sets quotas on polar bear hunting by natives in both Russia and the United States. It also establishes a commission to look at ways to  sustain polar bear habitat, which scientists say is threatened by global warming, pollution and overhunting.

The bill would prohibit the possession, sale and purchase of any polar bear or bear part and provide enforcement for violations. The only exception is for Native subsistence hunters.

Conservationists estimate the arctic polar bear population to be about 20,000. They say that number could drop by 30 percent by the year 2050.