whaling

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Nations Move to Breach Whaling Ban

Greenies say talks "wave the white flag" to whale killers

(Newser) - Secret government meetings could usher in a new era of legal commercial whaling for the first time in more than 20 years, the Independent reports. Twenty-eight whaling and anti-whaling nations have met twice to reach a compromise on the ban, which came after the near-extinction of many species. Environmentalists say...

Whale Meat Makes Comeback in Iceland

Sellers aim to introduce dish to youth market

(Newser) - Illegal for two decades, whale meat is back on menus in Iceland, and entrepreneurs are hoping to turn young people on to its charms, the Wall Street Journal reports. The food is reminiscent of beef, but costs only half as much—perhaps a mark in its favor for the young....

Humpbacks No Longer in Danger
 Humpbacks
 No Longer in Danger

Humpbacks No Longer in Danger

Spectacular success for conservation

(Newser) - Humpback whales, once feared to be on the verge of extinction, have made such a dramatic comeback that the International Union for Conservation of Nature has removed them from its list of vulnerable species. A ban on humpback whaling in the 1960s has allowed their numbers to grow to 55,...

Today's Drilling Rush Looks as Crude as Whale Oil Folly

In travel to Arctic, Post columnist sees new damage alongside old

(Newser) - On an otherwise deserted patch of Arctic ice stands an abandoned settlement, proof that humans once lived here. Nearby lies a reminder of why they came: dozens of massive whale skulls, still bleeding oil into the ground. Men once flocked to this land for whale oil, Michael Gerson writes in...

World Body Postpones Decision on Whale Hunts

Fractious conference delays decision on moratorium by a year

(Newser) - A moratorium on commercial whaling looks set to continue for another year after an international body put off a decision yesterday, the Economist notes, but its fate beyond that appears tenuous. The 81-nation International Whaling Commission, often paralyzed by conflicting views, also decided to revamp its decision-making process by forming...

Aussies Face Protests Over Kangaroo Cull

Pro-whaling Japan pounces on neighbor's seeming hypocrisy

(Newser) - Australia is planning to cull 400 kangaroos on a military base, and Japan—oft-criticized by Australia for its whaling practices—is jumping at the opportunity to hail its neighbor as hypocritical, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Not so, says Australia’s PM. The whaling issue is subject to "an...

Nations Mull Secret Whaling Compromise

Plan would let Japan hunt legally, but decrease slaughter

(Newser) - Representatives from more than 70 governments gathered last week at a secret meeting in London to hash out a compromise that would allow Japan to resume commercial whaling for the first time in more than 20 years. Pro- and anti-whaling nations discussed plans to lift the worldwide ban on whaling,...

Whaling Protester Says He Was Shot
Whaling Protester Says He Was Shot

Whaling Protester Says He Was Shot

Japanese vessel denies using bullets against activists

(Newser) - An anti-whaling activist says he was shot during a clash with a Japanese ship on the high seas, the Guardian reports. Japanese officials deny the allegations from the captain of the Sea Shepherd and say they fired only flash grenades, not bullets. Paul Watson, though, says he pulled one from...

Activists Hurl 'Acid' at Whalers
Activists Hurl 'Acid' at Whalers

Activists Hurl 'Acid' at Whalers

Action draws condemnation from Japan, Australia

(Newser) - In the latest clash between Japanese whalers and activists in Antarctic waters, members of a militant anti-whaling group threw bottles of a slick, foul-smelling rancid butter concoction onto the whaling fleet's flagship. Japanese officials said three sailors were injured when butyric acid, found in spoiled butter, splashed into their eyes,...

Whales Fall as Hunt Resumes
Whales Fall as Hunt Resumes

Whales Fall as Hunt Resumes

With Greenpeace gone to refuel, fleet harpoons 5 more

(Newser) - Japanese whalers have resumed their hunt in Antarctic waters, killing at least five whales when protest ships pulled back to refuel, the Australian News Network reports. Witnesses reported seeing the whales harpooned in the Southern Ocean after ships from Greenpeace and another protest group withdrew. In Tokyo, the Australian foreign...

Aussies Demand Whalers Release Eco-Warriors

Australian goverment moves to free men from belly of whaling ship

(Newser) - An Australian customs ship is steaming on it way to pick up two protesters being held on board a Japanese whaling ship, where they were lashed to a railing, CNN reports. The activists were seized by the ship's crew Tuesday after they boarded to deliver a protest letter saying that...

Judge Bans Japanese Whalers in Aussie Waters

Eco-warriors 'kidnapped,' tied to ship's mast

(Newser) - An Australian judge has banned hunting by Japanese whalers in a large section of their traditional grounds in Australian-claimed waters off Antarctica. The ruling came today just hours after crew members of a militant eco-ship boarded a Japanese whaling vessel in the Southern Ocean to deliver a protest note—then...

Greenpeace Ship Scatters Japanese Whalers

Hunt for 1,000 whales disrupted in sea chase

(Newser) - The Greenpeace pursuit of Japanese whaling ships continued yesterday after a ship operated by the environmental group earlier chased down and scattered a fleet of six Japanese whaling vessels in the waters off Antarctica. The Japanese fleet plans to hunt down 1,000 whales in what operators call a "...

Risky Showdown Looms as Eco-Ships Near Whalers

High noon on high seas as rival vessels battle to save mammoth creatures

(Newser) - Fears of a deadly battle increased yesterday as a Greenpeace ship began to close in on a Japanese whaling fleet intending to kill 1,000 whales. Also steaming through the Southern Ocean off Antarctica was a far more militant "eco ship," planning to ram the whaling vessels. "...

Japan Backs Down on Whaling
Japan Backs Down on Whaling

Japan Backs Down on Whaling

Australian pressure leads Tokyo to call off humpback hunt

(Newser) - In its first-ever turnaround on whaling, the Japanese government has dropped its plans to hunt humpbacks. The about-face is a victory for Kevin Rudd, the new Australian prime minister, who had objected strenuously and ordered a patrol of the humpback hunt. Tokyo said, however, that the fleet currently en route...

Japan Sends Mixed Signals on Whale Hunt

It cites tradition but denies tribe's bid to fish for salmon

(Newser) - Japan has a ready defense for its internationally maligned whale hunt: Whaling is integral to Japanese culture, embedded in the country's traditional diet, literature, and religion. Yet this argument looks questionable in light of the Japanese government's refusal to allow indigenous people to continue their traditional salmon fishing, writes Bruce...

New Zealand to Japanese Whalers: Go Home!

'Deception' blasted as fleet sails for 'research'

(Newser) - As a Japanese whaling fleet churned to Antarctic waters, a furious New Zealand prime minister today blasted the "deception" of Japan's claim that the killing ships will conduct research rather than commercial whaling. It would be better "if the Japanese stayed home," said Helen Clark. The fleet...

This Seafarer Hunts Whalers, Not Whales

‘Sea Shepherd’ enforces own marine rules, ignores others

(Newser) - Paul Watson is far too radical for Greenpeace, the group he co-founded. His vigilante group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is a roving pack of eco-saboteurs, trolling international waters for whalers—and ramming the offending ships. Watson usually operates illegally, and his theatrical and violent defense of aquatic life is credited...

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