Massachusetts Democrat John Kerry introduced Senate legislation yesterday that would scuttle petroleum lease sales in federal waters off Alaska's northern coast until the Interior Department determines whether polar bears should be listed under the Endangered Species Act.

The bill comes as Interior's Minerals Management Service is readying a Feb. 6 lease sale in the Chukchi Sea. Another branch of the department, the Fish and Wildlife Service, is simultaneously preparing a decision on the status of the polar bear, which environmentalists say would be harmed by energy development.


FWS Director Dale Hall told a Senate panel today that his goal is to make the final decision before Feb. 6 but would not commit to completing the decision by that date. "We are pushing to try to get there," Hall said. He delayed the decision beyond a legally mandated deadline last month.

The service, in response to a petition by environmental groups, is determining whether to extend ESA protections to the polar bear due to the loss of sea ice caused by global warming.