Where are the Australian Protesters? Save the Whales IV
Japan is not the only sinner, Norway plans to kill 1052 minke whales in 2008 for managing fish stocks, the same quota as in 2007. Could this (managing fish stocks) be behind the Japanese whaling program as well? I suggest we all cut back on our seafood consumption to save the whales. On the other hand, there may be problems with this too: we might need more soya products, and soya beans are best grown in what are now rainforests in the Amazon and Indonesia. Which shows that preaching about the “majesty” of the creatures we kill etc. does not lead anywhere. We need an approach that solves the economic-social-political problems of the world leading to enormous waste in some countries and hunger in others (see here).
“Norway resumed whaling in 1993, arguing that hunting is necessary to prevent the minke whale population from growing so large that it threatens fish stocks.
Minke whales are the smallest of the seven great whales. They are up to 11 metres long, and can weigh about 8 tons.”
Full article in the Sydney Morning Herald, 8.7.08.
See my previous posts on whale hunting.
February 8th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
It’s about time we stopped whaling everywhere, including Norway, the question is how? Greenpeace and other environmental groups just don’t have the financial muscle to protest everywhere, I think we need to change the mindset of the Japanese and Norwegian people. Banning whaling is wonderful, but if the people of Japan and Norway don’t vote for this with their wallets nothing will happen.
February 9th, 2008 at 11:11 am
It needs a bit more than “changing the mindsets of the Japanese and Norwegian people”. In Europe, serious overfishing has dangerously depleted fish stocks. Trawlers move further South along the African coasts, depleting fish stocks there and leading to further impoverishment of native people, who, consequently, try to get into Europe. Whales compete with humans for “seafood”, and the result is whaling.
In Antarctic waters, depletion of krill stocks may be a more serious threat to whales and fish populations than whaling. If this is indeed due to climate change, Australia’s responsibility would be to reduce global warming, for example by protecting its forests in Tasmania, etc. etc. After all, Australia’s per capita emission of greenhouse gases is among the worst on Earth (if not the worst). One sometimes gets the impression that the entire media circus about Japanese whaling is meant to deflect attention of the public away from the pulpmill development in Tasmania and other environmental issues. It is always easier to blame others.
February 11th, 2008 at 1:18 pm
I think there is a scientific case for culling the Minke whales to save the Blue whales in the Southern Ocean. According to data from the International Whaling Commission see http://www.iwcoffice.org/conservation/estimate.htm#table, there are about 2300 Blue whales and more than 500,000 Minke whales in the Southern Ocean. The Minke whale population grew more than a few times after the Blue, Sei and Fin whale populations were depleted by commerical harvesting during 1925-1975 by Australians and others.
Latest report published in Nature journal see http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v432/n7013/full/nature02996.html claims that Krill population in the Southern Ocean has reduced by about 80% since the 1970s. Thus the competition for Krill food between Minke and Blue whales is now a critical factor to prevent the extinction of the Blue whales. Simlar decline of Krill population in Arctic ocean has also been recorded.
Culling is a terrible way to manage wild animals. Australian Government guidelines call for the killing of baby kangeroos if the mother kangeroo is culled, see http://www.tams.act.gov.au/live/environment/local_wildlife/kangaroo_information/kangaroo_cull_factsheet and also http://www.livenews.com.au/Articles/2008/01/11/Whaling_kangaroo_cull_whats_the_bloody_difference_Activists.
In South Africa the culling of elephants in the Kruger Park requires the slaughter of whole families of elephants.
If a Minke mother whale is culled, following the Australian Govt guidelines for kangeroos, it may be more humane also to cull the baby Minke whale to prevent it from suffering a slow death in the ocean from starvation.
February 11th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
Krill has also been overharvested, and natural predators that would keep an overall balance in the southern ocean have also been overharvested (read Great White sharks). Farmed seafood in this regard is no better, since a large use of krill is as feed for fish farms.
February 12th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Do you have quantitative information about krill used for human consumption and aquaculture?
February 13th, 2008 at 10:16 am
Here some extracts of an article on ‘Cruel’ animal transport targeted’ and a link to the complete article.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7239456.stm
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“A campaign is under way to end the transportation of millions of animals over long distances for slaughter.
The global campaign is led by Handle With Care, a coalition of leading animal welfare charities including the RSPCA and Compassion in World Farming.
It has released undercover footage, filmed over two years, of “cruel and unnecessary journeys” animals endure.
It highlights journeys of thousands of miles, including sheep transported from Australia to the Middle East.”
 The cruelty these animals endure is completely unacceptable in the 21st century”
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 ”It also says four million sheep a year are shipped for up to 32 days between Australia and the Middle East, with an estimated 30,000 dying en route.”
And here is a link to a fact sheet on kangaroo culling in Australia.
http://www.tams.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/56823/Kangaroo_Culling_on_Defence_lands.pdf
February 13th, 2008 at 11:50 am
Here are extracts from the Wikipedia article on Antarctic krill. It seems that fisheries of krill is quite insignificant (for various technical reasons), and that the decline in krill must be due to environmental factors, i.e., the reduction in pack ice due to global warming.
“All seals consume 63–130 million tonnes, all whales 34–43 million tonnes, birds 15–20 million tonnes, squid 30–100 million tonnes, and fish 10–20 million tonnes, adding up to 152–313 million tonnes of krill consumption each year.â€
“The biomass of Antarctic krill is estimated to be between 125 to 725 million tonnesâ€
“There are concerns that the overall biomass of Antarctic krill has been declining rapidly over the last few decades. Some scientists have speculated this value being as high as 80%. This could be caused by the reduction of the pack ice zone due to global warming.â€
“The fishery of Antarctic krill is on the order of 100,000 tonnes per year. The major catching nations are Japan and Poland. The products are used largely in Japan as a delicacy and worldwide as animal food and fish bait.â€
February 19th, 2008 at 10:20 am
There is hope in sight! Humane treatment of animals may come if inhumane treatment affects your wallet. Full article here:
http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssConsumerGoodsAndRetailNews/idUSL1866119320080218
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Swedish fashion giant Hennes & Mauritz said on Monday it would stop buying merino wool taken from sheep in Australia that had been subjected to what it considered the unacceptable process of “mulesing.”
Mulesing involves cutting part of a sheep’s skin from its hind quarters to prevent flystrike, a potentially fatal maggot infestation, but animal rights groups say the procedure is often carried out without anesthetic.
“H&M does not accept mulesing,” H&M said in a statement. “The company has decided to direct its buying towards other countries of origin and other suppliers in Australia that can guarantee mulesing-free merino wool.”
March 13th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
An interesting interview with Jean-Michel Costeau about whale hunting
http://www.fr-online.de/in_und_ausland/politik/reportage/?em_cnt=1302815&em_cnt_page=2
March 16th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Look at this: http://news.smh.com.au/pm-denies-hypocrisy-over-kangaroo-cull/20080316-1zqq.html
March 31st, 2008 at 12:29 am
Eric
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April 8th, 2008 at 7:55 am
arab celebrities
Man i love reading your blog, interesting posts !