Bans, Legislation: Top news
"Hidden Pacific," a new feature film in IMAX, opening this year in theaters around the world, features spectacular footage of three Marine National Monuments found in the vast Pacific Ocean. Immerse yourself in the rare riches of biological diversity captured magnificently by award-winning conservation photographer and filmmaker Ian Shive.
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The United Nations, in an extensive recent report, warned that globally more than 1 million species of wildlife are likely to go extinct. Trump's new ESA regulations will help speed extinction for many US species.
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For the first time in seventeen years, Iceland’s whalers have decided to forgo whaling. And therein lies a tale. Iceland’s whaling is the province of Kristján Loftsson, the richest man in Iceland due to his many fisheries interests. The whaling policy in Iceland has largely been shaped by this man’s ego and vested interests.
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On July 16, the Whale Sanctuary Project kicked off a series of public meetings across the Salish Sea region to discuss its concept for a home in the San Juan Islands for orcas who are retired from entertainment parks, and that can also serve as a rehab/rescue facility for the endangered Southern Resident orcas.
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Using the Department of Interior Appropriations legislation to fund the agency for the next fiscal year, the House voted overwhelmingly to halt offshore oil leasing, exploration and drilling proposals by the Trump Administration. Now, the legislation will go to the Senate, where YOUR HELP is needed to ensure that the one-year bans stay in place, and that the Trump Administration is blocked from moving forward by giving away the ocean to the oil industry.
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On the morning of June 10, 2019, Canada’s House of Commons voted overwhelmingly to favor and pass Bill S-203, the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act.
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This new program for 2019-2024 proposes opening up more than 90% of the OCS to oil and gas development, while the previous 2017-2022 program kept almost 94% of the OCS protected from human interference. The Trump Administration in its zeal is rushing to lease as much territory as possible to oil drilling operations.
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IMMP staff and community members join the Empty the Tanks demonstration at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, CA. Groups in attendance included Empty the Tanks, Advocates for Animals at Six Flags, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and many individual activists.
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Marine mammal action alert: send your support for Bill S-203 to ban captivity to Canadian Minister Trudeau. Bill S-203 would see the permanent end to cetacean captivity in Canada.
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The Trump Administration Wanted to Drill for Oil by Leasing 90% of the US Offshore Continental Shelf, But Lawsuits and Political Opposition Have, For Now, Stalled the Leasing Process.
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Campaign Top News
- International Marine Mammal Project >
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From freeing Keiko to saving millions of dolphins from dying in tuna nets, to closing down marine parks including the notorious Whale Jail in Russia, the International Marine Mammal Project of Earth Island Institute has been in the forefront of efforts to end whaling, the killing of dolphins and protecting the ocean homes of these magnificent beings.
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From the cold reaches of the Russian coast, to Japan's notorious Cove, to global tuna fleets, to Barataria Bay, to the concrete tanks of SeaWorld - the International Marine Mammal Project had key accomplishments for whales and dolphins, thanks to your support!
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There's a lot of whale and dolphin jargon out there. Here's some explanations about what we know about cetaceans.
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- Save Japan Dolphins >
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Sale of live dolphins caught in the bloody Cove of Taiji, Japan, subsidizes the subsequent slaughter of the remaining dolphin pod. So a dolphin is torn from its family, and then will hear its own family die as it is dragged away to a miserable existence in concrete tanks for the rest of its life.
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TAIJI DOLPHIN SLAUGHTER: Police in Taiji like to put on a big show for locals by charging around in zodiacs, pretending to catch "eco-terrorists" who might (but never have) interfered with the dolphin slaughter. To them, the hunts are a big joke. Japanese tax dollars at work!
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Taiji's town government appears to be doubling down on whaling and the slaughter of dolphins. They have a new International Cetacean Center that appears to be dedicated to killing cetaceans. But the $12.2 million Center is virtually empty -- see our photos.
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- Dolphin + Whale Project >
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The recent International Whaling Commission meeting in Lima, Peru, passed an excellent resolution complaining that whaling countries -- Japan, Iceland and Norway -- are using population estimates larger than the IWC Scientific Committee. But a proposal for a South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary fell short by one vote.
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Cetaceans (whales and dolphins) have evolved amazing and complex sensory mechanisms to live in the ocean. But those senses are badly compromised when cetaceans are held in small concrete tanks for entertainment. Learn about why captivity is bad for cetacean senses.
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Josh Floum, attorney and president of Earth Island Institute, has led the legal effort to protect dolphins, sea turtles, and other marine life. In legal victory after victory, he's made our oceans safer for all our lives.
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- Keiko Whale Rescue >
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We are deeply saddened at the death of orca whale Tokitae. Calls for her release were denied for decades and it’s shameful that she never got a chance to go home.
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30 years ago, the movie "Free Willy" was a huge hit. The plight of its orca star, Keiko, touched the public along with the moving story. Read how the International Marine Mammal Project took that spark of concern and returned Keiko to his home waters. SeaWorld and other captive dolphin parks would never be the same!
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The last captive orca in Canada, Kiska, has died, after being kept alone for twelve years at the notorious MarineLand park in Niagara Falls. If Tokitae (Lolita) goes home to a seaside sanctuary, the only North American captive orcas will be those in SeaWorld's three parks.
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- Dolphin Safe Fishing >
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Dr. Angel Herrera is the Director of the International Marine Mammal Project’s (IMMP’s) Dolphin Safe (DS) Tuna Monitoring Program in Latin America. As a representative of Earth Island Institute since 1993, his DS monitoring work spans countries including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panamá, Peru, and Uruguay.
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For more than 30 years, Trixie Concepcion and her staff have worked to protect dolphins and other marine life in the Philippines, monitoring tuna fishing in the Western and Central Pacific Oceans to ensure the tuna is caught by Dolphin Safe methods, saving the lives of tens of thousands of dolphins annually.
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The history of the drowning of millions of dolphins by the tuna industry turned a corner in 1990, when US tuna giants agreed to work with the International Marine Mammal Project to establish Dolphin Safe fishing standards that avoid harm to dolphins and other marine life.
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- Freeing Orca Whales from Captivity >
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Serial Podcast "The Good Whale" Q+A With Dave Phillips, Executive Director, International Marine Mammal Project. Founder, Free Willy Keiko Foundation. Get a behind-the-scenes look at the new 6-part podcast about Keiko, the good whale.
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Behind the life and hopes with Keiko, the orca star of "Free Willy", was an enormous effort to bring him home. A new Serial podcast features a 6-part series on Keiko and his legacy. First two episodes drop on November 14th and can be found on most podcast sites. It features the role of IMMP in coordinating the Free Willy Keiko Foundation.
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There are just 18 orcas left stranded in concrete tanks in North America. They can continue to languish in small tanks doing tricks each day, or they can be retired to seaside sanctuaries, such as the Whale Sanctuary Project.
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- Freeing Wikie & Keijo >