By: James Wassell

Whaling is the hunting of whales and started in the year 4,000 BC. o Traditional Arctic whaling developed rapidity with early organized fleets in the 17 hundreds, competitive national whaling industries started in the 18 and 19 hundreds; and the start of factory ships along with the process of whale "harvesting“ in the first half of the 20 th century.

o Whaling is the hunting of whales for their meat and by-products such as oil krill and bone o Whaling started back around the 9th century. The first type of large-scale whale hunting took place in Spain, the business grew and by the end of the 19th century many other countries had adopted this industry and developed large whaling industries. o In the late 19th century, Norwegian whalers developed the method currently used to kill whales, the exploding harpoon.

o Over time many species were hunted until they were close to extinction and it became very apparent that whaling could not continue on such a large scale. o In 1986 the International Whaling Commission (IWC) adopted a worldwide ban on commercial whaling Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable Blue Whale Gray Whale Blue Whale Fin Whale North Pacific Right Whale North Atlantic Right Whale Sei Whale Beluga Sperm Whale

o The International Whaling Commission (IWC) was set up after the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling was signed, which was done in Washington DC on the 2nd of December o The purpose of the Convention is to provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and making it possible to continue development of the whaling industry.

The main duties: o Protection of certain whale species o Setting up whale sanctuaries o Limit number and size of whales that can be taken o Set open and closed whaling seasons

Not every country is a member of the IWC, so when they go whaling it is illegal and can be prosecuted. The main problem with whaling is reporting false catches and using scientific whaling as a loophole to be able to use whale for food.

o Canada o The Caribbean Islands o Greenland o Iceland o Norway o Japan o United States Even though the International Whaling Commission has banned whaling, it still exists. Whaling is now done mainly for food

o Over 1000 beluga whales and 300 to 400 narwhals are taken annually by Inuit hunters. o Also, one bowhead whale is taken approximately every two years.

o Hunt several dozen short-finned pilot whales and a certain number of dolphins. o They possessed an IWC subsistence-whaling permit for 20 humpback whales for the years o Two other Caribbean Islands that are not members of the IWC—hunt approximately 400 short-finned pilot whales and several species of dolphins. o They do this out of native tradition.

o Has a whaling quota of 19 fin whales a year. o They also hunt nearly 500 narwhals and over 600 beluga whales annually, along with pilot whales and harbor porpoises thus making Greenland one of the main whaling country.

o Iceland carried out scientific whaling in o A total of 36 minke whales were hunted in 2003; 25 in Norway o Hunts approximately 700 minke whales every year in its territorial waters.

o Member of the IWC, has a scientific permit and kills approximately 700 whales every year, mostly minke whales, but also about 50 bryde’s whales and sei whales and 10 sperm whales. o The Japanese also hunt small cetaceans; they kill more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises annually in their coastal waters. o Japan is the leading country in whaling and has been caught whaling illegally numerous times.

o In the United States whaling is only carried out by Alaska natives from nine different communities in Alaska. o The whaling program is managed by the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission which reports to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. o The hunt takes around 50 Bowhead Whales a year o Alaskan natives are very strict on whaling, if a member is caught illegally whaling they can serve up to life in prison.

o Commercial is the illegal hunting of whales for food without permission. o Substance is whaling carried out by native groups who have a long tradition of whaling and can show the IWC that whaling is needed for their people. o Scientific is what some people call a loophole in whaling where countries with permission can hunt large numbers of whales and do DNA testing, digestive testing and weight testing, then sell whale as food.

o Whaling is still a pretty simple practice that has not changed very much. o The whale is killed with an exploding harpoon attached to the ship. o Air is pumped through the harpoon to make the whale float and is dragged on the side of the ship to a larger factory ship. o This ship hauls the whale onboard butchers and stores the whale allowing for more whales to be killed.

o Traditional whaling is still used by Inuit people. o Most hunting is in shallow waters along the coast they use hand harpoons and chase the whale by boat until it dies. o The whale will then sink to the bottom for a few days then resurface and drift to shore where they butcher and use every part of the whale.

o IWC reported evidence from genetic testing of whale meat and blubber for sale on the open market in Japan. o In addition to the legally-permitted minke whale, the analyses showed that the 10-25% tissues sample came from non minke, baleen whales species.

o Russia has been systematically underreporting the number of whales it takes. o 48,477 Humpback Whales rather than the 2,710 it officially reported to the IWC. o The activist organization Earth Trust sent undercover employees to Korean ports. o The employees took photographs of whales being processed in violation of the ban and of whaling equipment

o Green Peace put out ads that show Japanese whaling to stop the scientific whaling in Japan. o IWC has put out restrictions on whaling but can’t enforce them if the country is in international waters. o Whale Wars, a TV show where the group called the sea shepherd and their boat the Steve Irwin have raised the bar in anti-whaling. o They have gone to such extremes of throwing stink bombs at ships, ramming ships, immobilizing ships, and piracy.