|
Pew calls upon Japan to send positive signal and co-operate Santiago, Chile, 27 June 2008. At the close of the annual meeting of the International Whaling commission (IWC) in Santiago, Chile, the Pew Environment Group said that it continues to support the efforts of the Chair of the IWC to seek a solution to the whale conservation policy impasse caused by the unilateral adoption of so-called scientific catch limits in defiance of the worldwide moratorium on commercial whaling. Pew calls on the IWC to make sure that the voice and input of Non-Governmental Organizations will be heard and made fully a part of the process. However, the Pew Environment Group believes that for these efforts to bear fruits, it is now urgent that the Government of Japan sends a strong signal that it is willing to reconsider the abuse of the scientific whaling and other loopholes in the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling which governs the IWC. The orchestrated litany of complaints by pro-whaling countries yesterday 26 June, and their haste to declare the process dead when the IWC exercised its right by not adopting a controversial proposal for a humpback whale quota for Greenland, was not helpful. Japan has a special responsibility in making sure that the countries in its orbit do not harpoon the process, and to secure a future for the IWC and for the whales. Note: The Pew Environment Group engaged in a dialogue with Japan, and organized in January 2008 the ‘Change in Climate for Whales’ Symposium at United Nations University, Tokyo. Press Release - Scientists find whales innocent of global decline in fisheries Santiago de Chile, 23 June 2008 The argument that great whales are behind declining fish stocks is completely without scientific foundation, leading researchers and conservation organizations said today as the International Whaling Commission opened its 60th meeting in Santiago, Chile. The Humane Society International (HSI), WWF and the Lenfest Ocean Programme presented three reports debunking the science behind the ‘whales-eat-fish’ claims emanating from whaling nations Japan, Norway and Iceland. The argument has been used to bolster support for whaling, particularly from developing nations. “It is not the whales, it is over-fishing and excess fishing capacity that are responsible for diminishing supplies of fish in developing countries,” said fisheries biologist Dr. Daniel Pauly, director of the University of British Columbia Fisheries Centre. “Making whales into scapegoats serves only to benefit wealthy whaling nations while harming developing nations by distracting any debate on the real causes of the declines of their fisheries.” Who’s eating all the fish? The food security rationale for culling cetaceans, examines the final destination of catches of coastal fisheries in the South Pacific, Caribbean and West Africa. Less than half the catch goes to domestic markets – the majority of the catch supplies markets of affluent countries in the European Union, Japan, North America, and increasingly China. “One can speak of fish migrating from the more needy to the less needy” states the report. Also presented to the IWC Scientific Committee were the preliminary results from an analysis of the interaction between whales and commercial fisheries in north west Africa. The modeling, supported by the Lenfest Ocean Program, shows no real competition between local or foreign fisheries and great whales. The great whales spend only a few months in the area during their vast seasonal migrations, eat relatively little while breeding and tend to consume fundamentally different types of food resources than the marine species targeted by both local and foreign fisheries. Inserting modelling assumptions to presume that great whales are not breeding in the area and eat species important to the fishing industry still fails to show that great whales are a significant source of competition to fishing, the report concluded. Also released today is a review of the scientific literature originating from Japan and Norway - the two countries most strongly promoting the idea that whales pose problems for fisheries. The review, funded by WWF, found significant flaws in much of the science and concluded that “where good data are available, there is no evidence to support the contention that whale predation presents an ecological issue for fisheries.” Dr. Susan Lieberman of WWF said, “These three reports provide yet more conclusive evidence that great whales are not responsible for the degraded state of the world’s fisheries. It is now time for governments to focus on the real reason for fisheries decline – unsustainable fishing operations.” “Dr. Pauly’s findings should refute, once and for all, the misconception that whales are eating all the fish and need to be killed to protect the world’s fisheries,” said Patricia Forkan, president of the Humane Society International. Notes: These three reports can be downloaded under embargo from the “whales-eat-fish” fallacy, at https://intranet.panda.org/documents/folder.cfm?uFolderID=61441 Press Advisory - Scientists to find whales innocent of global decline in fisheries Joint Press conference, WWF International, Humane Society International, Lenfest Ocean Program Santiago de Chile, 23 June 2008 The argument that great whales are behind declining fish stocks is completely without scientific foundation, leading researchers and conservation organizations will report at the International Whaling Commission’s 60th meeting in Santiago, Chile. The Humane Society International (HSI), WWF and the Lenfest Ocean Program will present three reports debunking the science behind the ‘whales-eat-fish’ claims emanating from whaling nations Japan, Norway and Iceland. The argument has been used to bolster support for whaling, particularly from developing nations. What? Press briefing at the International Whaling Commission meeting When? Monday, June 23, 1:00 p.m. Where? Sheraton Santiago, El Quixote Room (media room) Who?
Launch of the Pew Whale Conservation Project at IWC59 Anchorage, Alaska, 27th May. |
Joint NGO Press Release - EU Ministers urged to reject Greenland’s request to kill humpback whales (22nd June 2008)
Pew Press Release at end of IWC59 held in Anchorage (31st May 2007) Pew Press Conference in Anchorage, Alaska (28th May 2007) Pew Press Release (Monday 21st May 2007) Contact Justin Kenney, T. +1 215 575 9050
|
Pew’s Senior Public Affairs Officer Justin Kenney explained that the launch of the Pew Whale Conservation Project coincides with the launch of 
Pew’s Whale Conservation Project Director Monica Medina said that Pew is working to achieve three major objectives: to reinforce the international whale conservation regime by addressing loopholes (e.g. ICRW Art. V, VIII, etc); to address the “whales Eat Fish” controversy; and to promote a true Whaling Free South Hemisphere.
Pew Environment Group’s Senior Policy Adviser Rémi Parmentier explained the process by which Pew was able to gather at United Nations Headquarters 68 participants of 29 different nationalities to identify and debate ideas liable to help the IWC to move forward, away from the impasse it has found itself in recent years.
Banner image and other photographs used on this page are courtesy of José Palazzo - Projeto Baleia Franca Brasil.