David @ Tokyo

There is little doubt that many people opposed to whaling are opposed because they fear the possible extinction of great whale species.

"Right-minded people simply do not want to see these beautiful creatures hunted to extinction and I am glad that my motion received the support that it did.

"I hope that those 33 members of the IWC who voted in favour of the resumption of whaling will reconsider their position on this matter we cannot allow whales to be hunted to extinction."

--Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans

Of course, he's saying exactly the same thing as the whalers. No one wants to see any species of whale hunted to extinction, least of all the people who wish to eat them.

Under the IWC's Revised Management Procedure, "catches should not be allowed on stocks below 54% of the estimated carrying capacity".

One can but wonder what Mr Evans' response would be if he were asked exactly how he thought whales might be driven to extinction by hunting under such conservative conditions.

Humpback stocks in the Southern Hemisphere were apparently reduced to numbers in the very low thousands, if not hundreds, back in the days when the developed nations were hunting whales for oil. The level to which the humpback species was reduced was to probably around a single percentage point of the estimated carrying capacity, if not less than that even.

Yet today, 43 years on since the humpback was initially protected in 1963, the IWC Scientific Committee estimates that there are more than 40,000 (pg 39, 2006 SC Report), and that numbers continue to increase rapidly.

This is fabulous news. And yet, the RMP does not rely on whale stocks being able to recover from such low levels. The RMP will not allow any hunting for any stock at levels lower than 54% of it's carrying capacity.

One has to question whether Mr. Evans and others who share his fears are actually aware of this particular reality.

Labels: threats to whales, Whaling