AR-News: Norway Announces Plans To Kill 670 Whales

[Pat Wolff]

Norwegian Whale Hunt to Proceed Despite Contamination,
Says International Fund for Animal Welfare

9/23/03


To: National and International Desks, Environment
Reporters 

Contact: Chris Cutter of the International Fund for
Animal Welfare, 508-744-2066 or ccutter at ifaw.org

YARMOUTHPORT, Mass., Sept. 23 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The
Norwegian Government today announced it will kill 670
whales for commercial purposes next year. Conservation
organizations around the world, led by IFAW
(International Fund for Animal Welfare --
http://www.ifaw.org) criticized the announcement by
Norway, the only country in the world to openly engage
in a commercial hunt for internationally protected
whales.

The latest Norwegian announcement comes in the wake of
findings earlier this year that consumption of whale
meat could pose threats to human health due to high
levels of mercury and other pollutants concentrated in
whale meat and blubber. The contamination issue has
frustrated Norwegian attempts to re-open the
international trade in whale meat. The Government of
Japan has rejected attempts by Norway to export whale
products to that country due to human health concerns.

"The Norwegian authorities are sticking their heads
further and further into the sand", said Dr.
Christopher Tuite, IFAW Director of Wildlife and
Habitat. "This decision needlessly puts both whales
and people at risk. Instead of gambling with the
health of its citizens and defying the IWC, Norway
should join the international effort to save these
magnificent creatures from environmental and other
threats."

Norway has continued its commercial whale hunt despite
a global moratorium on such hunting by the
International Whaling Commission (IWC). Iceland and
Japan hunt whales using a scientific research loophole
in the ban.

Note for editors: IFAW has just obtained exclusive,
broadcast-quality video footage from Iceland's current
whale hunt. It is available on request.



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