Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut has asked the US National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for permission to import five beluga whales from Canada’s Marineland park at Niagara Falls. The International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute and many other organizations and members of the public strongly oppose the import. While Mystic claims the purpose of the import is to conduct scientific research on the beluga whales, the real purpose behind the import is to provide more breeding stock for captive whales to produce yet more captive cetaceans for the US captivity industry.
A record 9,500+ comments were made to the NMFS, at least two-thirds opposing the import permit. NMFS has yet to decide on whether to issue the permit or not. IMMP and our coalition of groups are closely following this issue and will report the outcome of NMFS’s deliberations for this permit.
There are several issues with the import proposal that are highly suspect and likely violate the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA):
1. The permit application asks for authorization to import so Mystic Aquarium can conduct scientific experiments. While these experiments may be valid, it is questionable that Mystic Aquarium would ask for a scientific permit when what they plan is to display the animals to the public, something that requires a display permit. Furthermore, moving the beluga whales to a new tank would be stressful and could result in harm, or death of the beluga whales, so IMMP has recommended any experiments be conducted at MarineLand, Canada, where the beluga whales currently reside.
2. Mystic Aquarium plans to breed the beluga whales, producing more cetaceans that will suffer in captivity. IMMP strongly opposes captivity for cetaceans, including captive breeding.
3. These beluga whales are the progeny of a population of beluga whales, designated as “depleted” under the provisions of the MMPA. Under current law, NMFS cannot approve imports from depleted populations, including any captive-bred progeny from the depleted population.
4. An investigation by IMMP and our Russian colleagues indicates the beluga whales were probably illegally exported from Russia, in violation of Russian laws. Once again, the MMPA ban on imports of illegally obtained marine mammals also applies to any progeny.
5. The Georgia Aquarium is playing a role that is unclear in the permit application. Three of the five beluga whales will “belong” to Georgia Aquarium, but the Aquarium is not officially part of the permit application.
6. Canada recently banned captive breeding or new imports of captive cetaceans, joining a trend that IMMP supports to phase out cetaceans held in captivity entirely. It would be improper for the US to allow import for captive breeding when that action is illegal in Canada. (Canada must also issue an export permit for the five beluga whales, and many Canadian organizations are working to oppose such a permit.)
Recently, IMMP hired the firm of ECONorthwest to examine the publicly available information on the financial health of Mystic Aquarium. Under the provisions of the MMPA, a facility must “prove that it has the resources to carry out the proposed activities and care for and maintain the animals.”
Even before the COVID-19 closure of Mystic Aquarium and other facilities, “(i)n the case of the Mystic Aquarium’s proposal to import five beluga whales, the financial capability of the applicant to do so at the time of its application in October 2019 was seriously at question. Since that time, Mystic’s ability to meet any reasonable test of financial prudence for such a program has been called even more into question as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The financial research shows that Mystic Aquarium has had to restructure its long-term debt at least three times since 1970. Monetary support from the State of Connecticut for the aquarium has declined, noted a Mystic senior vice president in 2012.
In 2016, as part of its strategic plan, Mystic Aquarium noted: “Mystic Aquarium faces increasing threats related to security and safety. In many ways, aging infrastructure and systems present immediate financial threats. We are also faced with threats related to the long-term survival of some of our key collection species, especially Steller sea lions and beluga whales, as the population under human care declines and the avenues for importation and breeding are limited or non-existent. Finding investment and ongoing funding for mission-related activities in research and conservation also threatens our ability to excel in these endeavors.”
75% of Mystic’s revenue comes from ticket sales and sales of items at the aquarium, such as food and souvenirs. This source has continually declined in value. According to the report, “Program service revenues in 2018 were $15,968,975. They were $15,957,983 in 2012. When adjusted for inflation to 2012 dollars, program service revenues declined 8.5 percent from 2012 to 2018.”
About 800,000 people visited the aquarium in 2019. Mystic closed its doors to the public on March 16th, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report concludes: “The most recent financial statement for the aquarium shows that they had $12,717,319 in third party debt on their books and an endowment balance of only $186,549. With operating revenues declining, their track record of renegotiating debt on at least three occasions in the last 20 years, the chances of a protracted pandemic hurting attendance, and the weakened financial position of the state of Connecticut government, the Aquarium is ill-suited to take on the risks of beluga whale scientific research and public display program that could very well result in the birth of additional whales, further increasing the already unexplained financial stress on the Aquarium.”
While the public comment period is over for the permit, IMMP nonetheless recently provided a copy of the financial report to NMFS, as new information is an important part of the permit consideration process. Several aquariums have asked for financial assistance from the federal government due to the COVID-19 closures. IMMP and our coalition of groups recently urged Congress to only give bailout funds to aquariums that agreed to phase out cetacean captivity by agreeing to end breeding of captive whales and dolphins and to end any imports of such animals, unless the import is needed for the health and welfare of the individual animal.
IMMP used funds provided by people like you to support the financial report on Mystic Aquarium, which calls into question the ability of Mystic (as well as other aquariums) to be able to adequately care for whales and dolphins, who are already at a disadvantage in captive situations. Help us continue to end captivity for beluga whales, orcas, and dolphins, and push for the retirement of these sensitive animals to seaside sanctuaries, where they can be free to live their lives without having to perform for the public. Please consider a contribution!
