Iceland’s Government Pauses Whaling Season Until August 31st

By Mark J. Palmer

This could be the end of whaling in Iceland. Much depends on the next steps taken by the Icelandic government.

On June 20, 2023, Svandis Svavarsdóttir, Iceland’s Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, announced: “I have taken the decision to suspend whaling” until 31 August.

A shocking study recently released showed that huge, endangered fin whales experienced long, painful deaths after being struck by exploding harpoons. The Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority, which conducted the study, reported that of 58 instances examined, 36 whales had to be harpooned more than once. Only 35 of the 58 monitored fin whales died instantly – average time from being shot with an exploding harpoon and death was 11.5 minutes. Two whales took more than an hour to die.

The Icelandic government set up the research following concerns that the whaling was in violation of Icelandic animal welfare laws that govern humane killing of animals.

“If the government and licensees cannot guarantee welfare requirements, these activities do not have a future,” Minister Svavarsdóttir explained.

While the whaling season technically goes through the month of September, observers believe the whaling fleet owned by Hvalar, the only whaling company left in Iceland, would not sail this year given winter weather concerns and the shortness of time to catch whales.

Icelanders have expressed mixed feelings about whaling, but a recent poll showed 51% of Icelanders favored ending whaling. In recent years, an active whale watching industry has been established, competing with the whalers. Both international organizations, like the International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute, and local activists in Iceland have protested the whaling for decades.

Permits allowing whaling expire in 2023, and the government has indicated it is considering not issuing new permits for 2024, effectively ending commercial whaling in Iceland.

This would leave only Norway and Japan as nations that continue to allow commercial whaling.

IMMP has joined forces with our friends at the Oceanic Preservation Society (OPS), OceanCare, and LegaSeas to mount a special appeal from the public to the government of Iceland, encouraging them to put an end to Iceland’s whaling industry.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Send a letter directly to Ms. Svandís Svavarsdóttir, the Icelandic Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries.

Urge her to end Iceland’s commercial whaling industry, for the good of whales and for the oceans. Iceland does not need the whale meat, and killing whales deprives the ocean of the ecological benefits of whales, including sequestering carbon and circulating nutrients for the health of the ocean ecosystem.

Minister Svavarsdóttir has indicated skepticism about continued Icelandic whaling. Help encourage her to protect the fin whale!

Thanks for your help.

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Your donations have fueled the successful fight against commercial whaling for years. If Iceland ends whaling, hundreds of endangered fin whales in the North Atlantic Ocean would no longer face the harpoon boats. And the day when ALL direct killing of whales and dolphins ends would come a giant step closer. Please donate to help the fin whales!