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Dfo Duty Is To Save The Narwhals
posted on November 28, 2008
November 27, 2008
News Release
Re: DFO Duty is to Save the Narwhals
Lifeforce, a Vancouver-based ecology organization, is urging people to write to DFO Minister Gail Shea in order to save the remaining narwhals trapped near Pond’s Inlet. (Shea.G@parl.gc.ca)
“There is still time to save maybe a hundred narwhals so get the ice breakers in there,” stated Peter Hamilton, Lifeforce Founder, “It is absolutely a disgrace for Canada when DFO has failed to protect marine wildlife. It is DFO’s duty to save the narwhals. We should remind DFO that in 1988 there was a joint US and Russia successful rescue that freed two gray whales trapped in ice off Alaska. There is even a greater need to save these narwhals because the loss of this many individuals would impact their genetic diversity and threaten their survival.”
This is yet another example of DFO's lack of emergency preparedness. The many examples include that it took a firefighter on holidays to setup his equipment to save a stranded gray whale in Boundary Bay, BC and it took DFO 3 days to get to the Robson Bight diesel spill when their office is located only 3 hours away. Lifeforce has been urging DFO to create an effective marine mammal response team. Recently DFO asked Lifeforce if they could call upon us respond to seal cases in our area. Heck we've been doing this for over a decade. We've been gathering equipment too – it was a first in Canada when we bought the first set of pontoons to refloat cetaceans many years ago.
In addition, Inuits and others shouldn't be eating the highly contaminated narwhals. This issue is similar to the Japanese slaughter of contaminated dolphins. When Lifeforce took action against the Vancouver Aquarium's beluga hunt in 1990 we advised Northern Communities of findings of high levels of mercury and other pollutants in wildlife such as belugas. Industrial pollution has hit the High North too.
In future DFO must have a zero quota for narwhals since the quota of 130 animals was greatly exceeded and any further hunts will jeopardize their survival.
For further information:
Peter Hamilton at lifeforcesociety@hotmail.com |
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