More On Obama's Cop Out on whales

The following comes from Sue Arnold, Australians for Animals, a decades long campaigner against whaling. She well expresses my own feeling about Obama's decision not to sanction Iceland and my bewilderment at how save-the-whales groups could think his actions useful.

By Sue Arnold
Barack Obama has taken the easy way out. A report to Congress which
in effect sets a precedent for diminishing not only the IWC but all
multilateral environmental agreements which rely on trade sanctions
for enforcement.

The failure to issue trade sanctions against Iceland has profound
ramifications and ensures that the IWC is now a very toothless tiger.
The WTO rules supreme.

This is very serious. As for the groups who believe the instruction
relative to the Arctic and Iceland are useful, please explain exactly how?

Sue Arnold
Australians for Animals Int.

Whale Experts Says Obama Deal on Iceland a Cop-out

The quotation below is from Dr. Sidney Holt, a man who knows more about saving whales than any other living person. He is now in his mid-80s and knows IWC history personally going back fifty years.

Many enviro groups have hailed Obama's statement as a great step in whale preservation. I believe they are terribly mistaken and that is backed up by Dr. Holt's assessment which I publish below.

"It is the usual cop-out. Iceland has already responded, naturally, with threats to block the US bowhead catch/strike limit (at next IWC) in Panama. The rot started three years ago with the US Chairman trying to throw away 40 years of effort, much of it led by the US - Obama is simply continuing that in his own way. But he seems to be continuing the Bush administration's position on practically everything, often subtly worse. We should all be worried, but you in the US specially so. Sidney

Hurricane Hits Taiji as Dolphin Hunt Opens

The Dolphin killers were pinned into port as Typhoon Talas slammed into Taiji as well as other parts of Japan bringing torrential rain and winds to 75 mph. Dolphin hunting is suspended. Leilani Munter, car racer and dolphin activist reports rain dripping into her hotel. About a dozen previously captured dolphins are trapped in sea pens in a nearby inlet and are imminent danger of drowning as the nets entangle them.

USA and France Protect Humpbacks

NOAA and France’s Protected Areas Agency have signed a “sister sanctuary” agreement to support the protection of endangered humpback whales that migrate annually more than 3,000 miles between NOAA’s Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary off the Massachusetts coast and Agoa Marine Mammal Sanctuary in the Caribbean’s French Antilles.

Italy Protests Japan's Slaughter of Dolphins

Italy has submitted a formal protest today against Japan and expressed "feelings of dismay and great concern and sadness of Italian public
opinion" for the hunting of dolphins, a practice followed annually for
centuries in the bay of Taiji, a village south of Tokyo, in Wakayama
prefecture.

In this regard, on the recommendation of the Minister for Foreign Affairs Franco
Frattini, the Charge d'Affaires Embassy of Italy in Tokyo Alfredo Durante Mangoni, immediately went to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign
Affairs (Gaimusho) where he met the Director General for Europe
to whom he handed a letter of protest upon the imminent start of hunting
season.

Toxic Tests Prove Dolphin Meat Not Food

Dolphin meat from Okinawa

Additional test results have just arrived, expanding on those we posted last week.

Funded by BlueVoice.org, Elsa Nature Conservancy of Japan has taken samples from the meat of dolphins killed at Taiji, Japan and Okinawa as well as Beaked Whales in North Pacific waters. Extremely high toxic levels were found for PCBs in pilot whale meat sold at Taiji. High levels of mercury and methyl mercury were found in meat from dolphins killed at Okinawa.

BlueVoice.org will present these results at the International Whaling Commission starting July 10 both to stop the killing of dolphins on Okinawa and the importation of dolphin meat from Taiji to Okinawa. The people of Japan should not be exposed to levels of toxins many times the levels allowed by their ministry of health.

The Taiji reports in Japanese and English are downloadable PDFs at:

http://www.bluevoice.org/pdf/taiji_testresults_english.pdf

http://www.bluevoice.org/pdf/taiji_testresults_japanese.pdf

Results from Okinawa show:

Dolphin 1: mercury 6.5 ppm (16.5 x allowable)
methyl mercury 3.1 ppm (10.33 x allowable)
PCBs 2.4 ppm (4.8 x allowable)

Dolphin#2 mercury 3.88ppm (3.5 x allowable)
Methyl mercury 1.6ppm (4.8 x allowable)
PCBs 0.27 ppm (below allowable, probably because this was a calf.

Provisional regulatory levels of mercury and PCBs set by the Japanese government:
Mercury (T-Hg):0.4ppm, Methyl mercury (M-Hg):0.3ppm, PCBs:0.5ppm

Baird’s Beaked Whale was not contaminated by radiation but contained mercury:1.42ppm, methyl mercury:0.76ppm. PCB 0.10ppm

The meat was eaten on June 21 by nearly 40 school children, fifth grade of two primary schools before the meat had been tested. “This is important, because its mercury is 3.5 times higher and its PCBs is 1.5 times higher than the maximum allowance levels.” Sakae Hemmi, Elsa Nature Conservancy

New Toxic Results from Taiji Dolphin Meat

Funded by BlueVoice.org, Elsa Nature Conservancy of Japan has taken samples from the meat of dolphins killed at Taiji, Japan. Extremely high results were found for PCBs in pilot whale meat. High levels of mercury and methyl mercury were found in other dolphin meat.

The reports in Japanese and English are downloadable PDFs at:

http://www.bluevoice.org/pdf/taiji_testresults_english.pdf
http://www.bluevoice.org/pdf/taiji_testresults_japanese.pdf

Caribbean Whale now off Greenland - Danger

My apologies to Jodi Frediani for misspelling her name in my previous post. She has generously sent a picture of the Silver Banks - Greenland whale - a shot taken this year on the Silver Banks north of the Dominican Republic. The whale is not named but the Greenland researchers have called it 0001 or One. This whale is now in real danger from Greenland hunters.

Jodi Fredi reports Greenland whale (ID'd on the Silver Banks 2011) has just been sighted off Greenland. Now in danger of being hunted. We want to make this issue of hunting humpbacks personal.

The Voice of the Dolphins Published

My book, The Voice of the Dolphins, is now available at my eStore

http:www.createspace.com/3501299

It will be on Amazon in 4 days, Kindle in 3 weeks and in book stores.

Please let your friends and lists know about the book, where appropriate.

It covers decades of encounters with whales and dolphins in the wild, the fight to stop the slaughter of dolphins in Japan starting with Iki in 1979 and continuing through Taiji in modern times, the savagery of captivity, the huge dolphin die-off along the east coast in 1988 and the emergence of disease among dolphins deriving from suppressed immune systems due to chemical toxicity. Finally it connects contamination of the marine food chain to human disease including cancer.

Much of the book tells of marvelous encounters with dolphins and whales in the open sea, encounters that demonstrate the sentience, intelligence, curiosity and wonder of these creatures.

Jpan Whaling in North Foiled by Weather

Japan's so-called research whaling in waters off Northern Japan, scheduled to start Monday, was postponed to Tuesday or later due to bad weather.
The Japan Fisheries Agency said the whaling season, which will run through early June, will be held with a quota of up to 60 minke whales for biological research.
The first whale caught will be tested for traces of radioactive substances, in the wake of the nuclear crisis at the radiation-leaking Fukushima Daiichi atomic power plant, which was crippled due to the quake-tsunami disaster.

Action Alert: Tuna

An important vote is taking place April 28 on rules governing the tuna fishery. This is an action alert - important. Please go to http://bit.ly/ebQ7UK

No Dolphin Hunting in Futo

I just received word from Mr. Ishii, the former dolphin hunter who is now leading whale and dolphin watching trips. Great news!!

Yesterday, I attended the Annual meeting of the Ito(Futo) Fishermen's Union.
Their Annual Report says that their target for dolphin sales this
year .. is ZERO yen! This is because there have been no sales of dolphin for several years in Futo.I believe that there are various reasons but one of them must be people's unspoken resistance.......
But the fishermen are still waiting for the chance to hunt.
Let's continue our silent, well-mannered resistance with the words
"We are free!"

Famous San Juan Killer Whale is Presumed Lost

From Orca Network: According to Ken Balcomb of The Whale Center, J1/Ruffles, has been missing since late November. This is very sad news for all who follow the Southern Resident community of orcas, as J1 is the oldest male, father to MANY offspring in all three pods, and his HUGE, beautiful, ruffled fin was the most visible and recognizable fin in the entire community, and he is loved by us all.

I filmed J1 many times over the years and never ceased to marvel at this magnificent orca. It is sad to know he is gone. You can see him in The Dolphin Defender and in the closing title sequence of the series Challenge of the Seas (filmed 12 years ago).

Infant Dolphins Die Along Gulf Coast

In the wake of the devastating oil spill of last spring and summer, 17 infant dolphins have died in Gulf waters. The main birthing season has not yet begun. This points to a catastrophic birthing season. http://www.sunherald.com

What's Next for Japan Whaling

My blog on future of Japan #whaling is at http://bluevoice.org/blog.php
It includes information on disease in whales that cud xfr to humans.

Japan withdraws from Southern Ocean whaling

Japan says it will withdraw whaling fleet from Southern Ocean under pressure from Sea Shepherd. But what now? The butchers could return next year or move their operations to the NW Pacific where they have hunted a variety of whale species. But if few are eating whale meat and stockpiles of whale meat are huge there may be no incentive to whale. Japan is already losing millions pursuing its mindless butchery. All this while Japan's economy languishes.

Sea Shepherds Drive Japan Whalers from Antarctic

Just received email from Paul Watson re Japan's retreat. "The Nissin Maru is heading eastward still and is in the Drake Passage moving towards the South Atlantic. I think they believe they can run the Bob Barker out of fuel. They can’t. The Bob Barker can follow wherever they go – East or West. I believe they are going around the continent and so I’m sending the Gojira and the Steve Irwin West to meet them. The three harpoon vessels are heading west also. Paul

Though many deserve credit for fighting Japan's whaling it is clear that Sea Shepherd ships drove the whalers out of the Antarctic by making it impossible to whale.

Sales of Whale Meat Fall

Japanese fisheries officials have announced that consumption of whale meat has fallen precipitously and the model of using sales of "scientific" whale meat to sustain the hunt is no longer viable.

Japanese Store Sells Humpback Meat via web

Shimetani store in Taiji has placed an ad for humpback meat
on its website! What is source of meat? Greenland? More likely humpbacks caught "accidentally" in nets? There is no legitimate way they could have humpback meat for sale.

U.S. Rep to IWC in Cahoots with Japanese Whalers

Wikileaks: The U.S. representative to the International Whaling Commission, Monica Medina, discussed revoking the U.S.-based Sea Shepherd's tax exempt status with senior officials of the Japan Fisheries Agency in November 2009. It is beyond outrageous to use the IRS to surpress dissent.