Compromise proposes Japan slash Antarctic whaling

Shaun Tandon Yahoo News 23 Apr 10;

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The International Whaling Commission on Thursday unveiled a compromise proposal aimed at resolving longstanding rifts under which Japan would eventually cut its Antarctic catch by three-quarters.

The proposal, which will be voted on at a June meeting in Morocco, sets a 10-year plan that would bring Japan, Iceland and Norway back under the control of the 88-nation global whale body after years of rising tensions.

The International Whaling Commission (IWC), which led months of negotiations with the cautious support of the United States, said the package was a delicate set of balances that would save thousands of whales.

"It will be a major achievement if, despite some fundamental differences of views on whaling, our member countries can put these differences aside for a period to focus on ensuring the world has healthy whale stocks," IWC chair Cristian Maquieira said.

But many environmentalists strongly oppose the proposal, arguing that it would end a 1986 moratorium on commercial whaling in all but name and risked reviving a dwindling industry in whale meat.

"This is probably the biggest threat to the ban on commercial whaling that we've faced since it came into force," said Nicolas Entrup of the Munich-based Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.

"This is a critical moment for the conservation movement."

Under the proposal, Japan's Antarctic catch would go down to 410 whales next season and then 205 whales in the 2015-2016 season. Japan's annual Antarctic hunt has infuriated Australia, which has threatened legal action.

Japan currently plans to kill 765-935 whales each season in the Antarctic, although its latest catch was down to 507 whales due to sustained high-seas harassment by environmentalists.

The compromise would also allow the killing of 870 minke whales a year in the Atlantic, roughly in line with current total catches by Norway and Iceland, along with Japan's continued hunt in the Pacific Ocean.

The IWC imposed a moratorium on commercial whaling in 1986. Japan employs a loophole that allows "lethal research" on the ocean giants, while Norway and Iceland defy the moratorium altogether.

The United States has helped spearhead the compromise but withheld a final judgment on the proposal, anticipating further negotiations through the June meeting in Morocco.

Monica Medina, the US commissioner to the IWC, said the bottom line for the United States was to save whales.

"The important thing here is that the IWC isn't working right now," Medina told AFP.

"Even with the moratorium in place, the number of whales being killed is increasing and if we can turn that around and decrease the number of whales being killed, that would be a good thing."

Advocates for the compromise say that IWC negotiations have been so consumed by arguments that the body has not taken action on growing threats to whales such as climate change, ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear.

But environmentalists say that the proposal rewards Iceland, Japan and Norway for skirting the 1986 moratorium and spells out no action after the 10-year period.

Environmentalists led a rally on Washington's National Mall to urge President Barack Obama to intervene to stop the proposal.

"The United States needs to take a page out of Japan's playbook and show a similarly serious and long-term commitment to advance its policy position -- conservation," said Patrick Ramage, director of the global whale program at the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Australia has been skeptical of the proposal. In a submission to the discussion, Australia complained that whaling nations had made no serious concessions.

Japan in turn has insisted it would never give up whaling, which it considers part of its culture, despite calls on it to phase out the hunt over 10 years.

South Korea has harshly criticized the proposal as it leaves whaling in the hands of three nations. South Korea officially does not hunt whales but allows the sale of meat in whales accidentally netted -- in what environmentalists say is an easily exploitable loophole.

Whaling plan draws greens' anger
Richard Black, BBC News 22 Apr 10;

The International Whaling Commission (IWC) has published draft proposals for regulating whaling for the next decade.

Japan's Antarctic whale hunt would fall in stages to less than a quarter of its current size. But hunting would continue on the endangered fin whale.

The draft is the latest stage in a two-year process aiming to find compromise between pro- and anti-whaling camps.

It will be debated at the IWC's annual meeting in June. Some conservation groups have already condemned it.

Commercial whaling was banned globally in 1982, but Iceland, Japan and Norway continue to hunt under various exemptions, collectively targeting more than 2,000 whales each year.

"If an agreement is reached, this represents a great step forward in terms of the conservation of whales and the management of whaling," said IWC chairman Cristian Maquieira.

"For the first time since the adoption of the commercial whaling moratorium, we will have strict, enforceable limits on all whaling operations.

"As a result, several thousand less whales will be killed over the period of the agreement."

Seeking sanctuary

Key countries, including the US and Japan, have limited comments to saying they will consider the draft proposal carefully.

But some conservation and animal welfare groups have already indicated opposition.

"The fact that this proposal is even being discussed shows just how far out of touch the IWC is with modern values," said Claire Bass, manager of the Marine Mammal Programme at the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA).

"It is entirely missing the point that blasting conscious animals with exploding harpoons is grossly inhumane."

However, others argue that the aim of completely banning whaling is unrealistic, and that a major down-scaling, combined with bringing it under international oversight, is a worthwhile compromise.

But the inclusion of fin whales and the continuation of hunting in the Southern Ocean - which has been declared a whale sanctuary - are points of concern.

"There are some positive elements here, but there are some unacceptable provisions too," said Sue Lieberman, director of international policy with the Pew Environment Group.

"This allows whaling by Japan to continue in the Southern Ocean - and the Southern Ocean Sanctuary should be set in stone."

Quota cuts

Japan currently targets about 930 minke whales and 50 fins in each Antarctic season, though in recent years it has actually caught a lot fewer owing to skirmishes with ships of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and to a fire on the factory ship Nisshin Maru.

The draft envisages the annual Antarctic minke catch falling to 400 immediately, then to 200 in the 2015/16 season.

The fin whale quota would be set at 10 now, falling to five in 2013/4.

A demand that Japan has made regularly for several years - that it be allocated a commercial or quasi-commercial minke whale quota in the North Pacific waters around its coasts - would be granted, with 120 of the animals targeted each year.

Iceland - which last year mounted a major escalation in its fin whale hunt, catching 125 - would be allocated an annual quota of 80 fins and 80 minkes, which is considerably less than it has been demanding.

Norway's annual quota would be set at 600 minkes, and no other country would be permitted to start hunting - a clause that has aroused the ire of South Korea.

It is clear that the big players are still some way apart on key issues, including whether international trade should be permitted during the 10-year period.

Permitting it is a key demand of Iceland, which sees a potentially big export market in Japan. But conservation groups and anti-whaling nations are equally adamant that it must be stopped.

International trade in whalemeat is banned, but Iceland, Japan and Norway have registered exemptions to the UN wildlife trade convention for some whale species.

If adopted at the June IWC meeting, the "peace package" would set terms for the next 10 years, with a review after five.

Initial quotas could be amended downwards if scientific assessments indicated the necessity.

Governments would agree not to set quotas unilaterally, and to keep all hunting within the control of the IWC, effectively suspending the current measures of "scientific" whaling or hunting "under objection".

Whaling nations would have to agree to a monitoring regime involving observers on boats and a DNA register designed to keep illegal whalemeat out of the market.

Whaling by indigenous groups would not be affected.