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News
04.05.10 A meeting of Commonwealth and State Government representatives, scientists and key stakeholders will take place in Townsville this week to discuss how best to protect and conserve the Australian snubfin dolphin (Orcaella heinsohni).Closely related to the Irrawaddy dolphin (O. brevirostris) the snubfin dolphin is relatively new to science, having been first described only five years ago.The protect...
02.05.10 In a recent letter to the AWCS, the Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett has given his assurance that the Australian Government intends to maintain its opposition to commercial whaling and “scientific” whaling at the 2010 meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) scheduled for June.In recent weeks the IWC Small Working Group for the Future of the IWC (SWG) released a Consensus...
25.04.10
On 1 March we reported that one of the proposals arising from the Small Working Group (SWG) on the Future of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) included a deal in which Japan would cease its “scientific whaling” program in the Southern Ocean, JARPA II, in exchange for legitimate whaling quotas, despite the ongoing global moratorium on commercial whaling.The Society’s concern about such a...
01.03.10 The Australian Government has been quick to respond to the so-called “Maquieira Proposal”, released by International Whaling Commission (IWC) chair Cristian Maquieira last week. [See News Item 28.02.10] The proposal, if adopted, would essentially legitimise the whaling activities of Japan, Norway and Iceland in return for a few minor compromises.The Maquieira Proposal is one of a number of options...
28.02.10 As we feared [see News Item 03.05.09] a proposal has emerged from an intersessional meeting of the Small Working Group (SWG) on the Future of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) that would allow Japan and its whaling accomplices to trade-in its self-issued scientific whaling quotas for “legitimate” IWC quotas. The deal would likely extend to nations such as Norway that lodged objections to ...
28.02.10 In a long overdue ultimatum, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has stated publically that unless there is agreement from the Japanese Government to reduce its Antarctic take of whales to zero, then the Australian Government will commence action in the International Court of Justice before Japan embarks on its next Antarctic whaling voyage in November this year. This follows more than two years ...
18.10.09 In only six weeks, five humpback whales have been caught by shark nets set in the inshore waters of the Gold Coast. The most recent, a seven metre juvenile, became entangled in the Burleigh Beach net on 13 October.Fortunately, the whale was freed, but only after an hour of dangerous work in rough sea conditions by trained personnel from the Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol and Sea World res...
18.10.09 The Queensland Government has released a discussion paper seeking public comment on the review of its marine mammal protection legislation. The discussion paper addresses the three marine mammal groups that are most abundant in Queensland waters; whales, dolphins and dugong.More than 30 marine mammal species are to be found in the state’s waters, from widely distributed bottlenose dolphins to the ...
04.10.09 So far this year, three humpback whales have been freed from entanglement in shark nets in the inshore waters along Queensland’s Gold Coast. And the annual whale migration is still far from over.The first for the season was on 1 September, followed by another, badly entangled adult less than four weeks later.The latest was a young six metre humpback, caught in a net off Kirra on 3 October.A specia...
04.10.09 October should be the month when the annual Norwegian minke whale hunt concludes. Not so this year.The 2009 hunt ended in June, with 350 minkes killed. That is only 40% of the 885 minkes allocated by the Norwegian Government.The whaling industry itself called the early closure to the season because of reducing local demand for the meat. It is further understood that much of the previous season’s c...
14.06.09 The 2009 annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) is set to begin on Monday 22 June in Madeira, Portugal.Meetings of the IWC Scientific Committee are held in the leadup period and have already concluded. This coming week will be taken up by sub-committees that have been established to deal with specific issues such as Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling and Whaling Infractions.It is...
03.05.09 As reported previously, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) has convened a series of meetings to discuss the Commission’s future. The future of the IWC is of course inextricably linked to the futures of many thousands of whales.Two years ago, at the 2007 Annual Meeting, IWC members agreed that an intercessional meeting should be held in the leadup to the 2008 Annual Meeting in an effort to ...
19.04.09 In December 1959 twelve nations including Australia signed a remarkable document known as the Antarctic Treaty.The Treaty declared that “Antarctica should be used exclusively for peaceful purposes”, promoting scientific research and international cooperation. Rather remarkably, even though it was drawn up and signed at the height of the cold war, the Treaty specifically prohibits “military activit...
19.04.09 A little over 12 months ago, scientists examining satellite images of the Antarctic Peninsula observed the disintegration of the Wilkins Ice Shelf (around 71 degrees S; 73 degrees W).Covering around 13,000 square kilometres Wilkins effectively broke up into innumerable pieces between February and March 2008. With the onset of colder temperatures, sea ice formed between the fragments, securing them...
15.03.09 With more than 200,000 litres of spilled oil washing up on the southeast Queensland coast, volunteers are needed to assist with cleaning up the shoreline and rescuing wildlife.In many locations it is preferable to collect the washed up oil by hand rather than using earthmoving equipment.Preliminary checks have found that inshore dolphin populations might not have been severely affected at this sta...
21.02.09 In a move that will help to promote responsible, non-lethal whale research in the Southern Ocean and elsewhere, Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett has announced grant funding of $1.5 million for “priority marine mammal research”.The program dovetails neatly into the research and conservation initiative funding announced late last year. The Minister is careful to point out that applicati...
21.02.09 Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett has provided some clarification of Australia’s position on the "whale trading" options currently under consideration by the International Whaling Commission (IWC).A 28 nation Small Working Group (SWG) was established by the IWC in June 2008 to try to negotiate a resolution to the prolonged stalemate over whaling. Australia is a member of the SWG.Since the...
01.02.09 Concerns have been raised about a possible compromise in the International Whaling Commission (IWC) whereby Japan might scale back or even discontinue its Antarctic whaling program (JARPA II) in return for taking more whales in the North Pacific.Details of the proposal tabled, and the discussion that followed, are unclear because they took place at a closed-door meeting of the Small Working Group ...
11.01.09 The Australian Government clarified on 8 January that it has no intention of banning the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society from using Australian ports. Japan officials have suggested that permission to dock and refuel should be denied because of the anti-whaling activists' tactics of intervention in Antarctic waters.While calling on both parties to refrain from activities that endanger lives or v...
04.01.09 The beginning of the new year finds the Japanese whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean, intent on killing 850 (± 10%) Antarctic minke whales and 50 fin whales.The scientific whaling permit issued to the fleet by the Japanese Government does not include humpback whales. Under the Japanese Antarctic whaling program, JARPA II, 50 humpbacks were intended to be harpooned annually, commencing last season...
04.01.09 In November 2008 Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett announced funding of $6.15 million to “kick-start” a range of whale research and conservation initiatives. The largest portion, some $4 million, would be spent on research programs and scientific partnerships with other countries.In December, Garrett increased the funding package by $26 million over the next five years.A major focus of t...
04.01.09 Environmental organization Greenpeace has pushed the Japanese Government and Japanese whaling interests reluctantly into the local media spotlight with new revelations about corruption in the whaling industry.Acting on a tip-off from a former whaling ship employee, members of Greenpeace Japan convened a media conference in May 2008 to reveal a large package of whale meat that had been illegally sh...
04.01.09 Veterinary pathologists from Sydney's Taronga Zoo have released the necropsy report for the orphaned humpback whale calf that swam into Pittwater in August.Daily media reports drew national attention to the debate about what should be done about the whale, named Colin, after attempts to lure it out of the bay and to locate its mother failed.Following days of consultation with experts in Australia ...
24.11.08 Japan’s whaling fleet factory ship, the Nisshin Maru, sailed from the island port of Innoshima in southern Japan on 17 November on its way to the Antarctic.On board is this season’s “scientific whaling permit” issued by the Government of Japan. It is understood that the intention is to take 850 minke and 50 fin whales.
For the second consecutive year Japan has announced that it will postpone th...
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