Workers using Corexit in the Exxon Valdez Spill. Photo Credit : The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council

It’s been over a month since President Obama and the EPA gave BP 24 hours to stop dumping the toxic oil dispersant Corexit into the Gulf of Mexico. The decision was first reported in the Washington Post immediately after Congress heard testimony from BP’s own executives and scientists confirming our worst fears. Not only is this highly toxic chemical relatively ineffective against this type of crude oil, but it was now adding more pollutants to the already poisoned waters.

Numerous independent scientists have come forward to say that Corexit is really only good for public relations. This carcinogenic, mutagenic, and highly toxic chemical does break up the oil into small somewhat transparent ripples and droplets that are more visually acceptable than images of giant black tides drowning wildlife and covering beaches. What the cameras don’t see is the long term damage to delicate ecosystems that are now struggling to escape toxic tides of chemicals. According to environmental engineer Joe Taylor the sulfur and sulfuric acid based dispersant will also deplete oxygen levels under the water, killing plankton and everything above plankton in the food chain. This is not new information. Corexit has been banned for years in the UK because of the long and short-term damage to wildlife and ecosystems. The world was first introduced to Corexit in 1989 when it was used in the Exxon Valdez spill. Images of the workers during that spill spraying the chemical in hazmat suits should have been our first clue something wasn’t quit right with this chemical.

So – why at the time of this decision had BP already sprayed over 600,000 gallons of Corexit on the surface of the Gulf with another 55,000 injected directly into the oil pouring out of the ocean floor? And why, one month later, have they been allowed to dump even more? It is estimated that more than 1.4 million gallons have already been used.

Please act today to remind President Obama that this disaster could have been prevented and that he needs to restore the moratorium on all-offshore drilling in the U.S.

The proposal would have allowed countries like Japan, Norway and Iceland, who never stopped killing whales in the first place, to continue killing them, with the endorsement of the IWC.  Thanks to pressure from IDA and whale supporters worldwide, we stood firmly unified, demanding real protection from hunting for whales. The world listened. And they agreed.

Although we prevailed in maintaining the global ban on commercial whaling, other significant pressures continue to harm whales and threaten their existence.  Starvation, increasing predation by orcas, migration through industrial polluted waters, oil spills, military sonar, and commercial fishing operations are among the many obstacles threatening their survival today.  The central location of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, for example, is home to an endangered sperm whale population. In 2009, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration indicated the population would not be able to withstand a loss of three additional whales due to man.  Last week, the first dead sperm whale was found floating 77 miles south of the sunken rig.

Please enjoy the victory – and take pride in the part you played preserving the moratorium on commercial whaling. Stay tuned for upcoming alerts to further protect marine mammals and their habitats. Next time we ask you to send a letter or fax, remember this – it can work. Every fax and e-mail you sent made this victory possible.

Killer whale Taima, bottom, nudges her newborn calf toward the surface of the water for her first breath at SeaWorld on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2000, in Orlando, Fla. Taima died in child birth on June 6, 2010. ( (AP Photo/SeaWorld, Chris Gotshall, HO))

IDA is deeply saddened by the death of Taima, a long-suffering 20-year-old captive killer whale who died prematurely and unnaturally while giving birth to her stillborn calf yesterday at SeaWorld in Orlando. Her life was as upsetting as her death..

Captive breeding of killer whales by SeaWorld or other commercial aquaria does not contribute to meaningful conservation of the species since any surviving calf would not be released back into the wild. Instead, breeding programs simply replenish the population of imprisoned killer whales who normally die decades before their wild counterparts.  SeaWorld’s bottom line is to profit financially by using killer whales to entertain the public, not to protect wild killer whales and their habitats.

The father of Taima’s stillborn calf is Tilikum, the six-ton killer whale also held at SeaWorld in Orlando. Ever since he killed his trainer in February, he’s been stuck in yet a smaller tank where he floats listlessly at the surface because of the lack of space he has to barely turn around. Since he is not participating in any shows for the time being, his main worth to SeaWorld is his semen, which is taken from him to breed more animals and make more money.  Katina, a 32-year old killer whale also at SeaWorld in Orlando, is currently carrying his calf and is due in late October. 

What You Can Do:

Even if you have already responded to our previous requests for public comments, please do so again. Urge the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to phase out marine parks and, until then, create stricter regulations and oversight for facilities with public display permits, and prohibit any further captive breeding or captures of marine mammals from the wild. Please commemorate the death of Taima and her stillborn calf in the official public comment record. We must use this opportunity to urge NMFS to stop any further dolphin captive breeding programs including killer whales, the largest species in the dolphin family.

Please submit your polite comments on or before this Thursday, June 10 at 5:00 p.m., EST.

Over the weekend, IDA, along with other activists, joined forces at Pier 39 in San Francisco—home to Aquarium of the Bay—to galvanize public support in urging the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to create and enforce stricter regulations to protect marine mammals held in aquaria for public display.

NMFS is accepting public comments through June 10 regarding the Marine Mammal Protection Act, including the section that permits its public display.  It is critical we continue to attract greater support in driving the NMFS to stop allowing ‘abusement’ parks like SeaWorld, the Miami Seaquarium, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, and other commercial aquaria from exploiting marine mammals under the guise of “education.”  The United Kingdom boasts a progressive marine conservation ethic and there are no marine parks left—a perfect illustration that you don’t need to confine marine mammals in tiny, chlorinated swimming pools, forcing them to perform ridiculous tricks for food amid the din of a crowd and ear-piercing music to provide the public with a quality marine education.

As a first step, Congress must mandate that marine parks stop coercing animals to perform tricks for food, stop captive breeding programs, and ban the live captures of marine mammals for public display.

Please submit your comments to NMFS and share this alert with your family and friends on your social networking sites. The deadline is June 10.

Marine mammals are suffering in captivity and thank you for your help!

Copyright: Wolcott Henry

You may recall in 2008, IDA reported about a juvenile female whale shark rescued by the Atlantis Hotel off the coast in Dubai.  IDA supporters along with local environmental and animal protection groups called for her immediate release in light of the hotel’s reputation for exploiting animals for profit.  Last Thursday, the Atlantis Hotel announced they had fitted her with a satellite tag and released the juvenile female whale shark known as “Sammy” into the Persian Gulf.

The hotel stated that the reason behind their decision to release her was because of the outpouring of local and international support calling for her freedom.  Her welfare, inability to forage, or thrive in the confines of captivity are among the many reasons why pelagic species (especially the world’s largest fish species) do not belong in hotels or any other captive enterprise. While Sammy is back in the wild, other animals at the hotel are not so lucky.  In 2007, despite wide spread international protest, the hotel imported wild caught dolphins from the Solomon Islands, flew them 30 hours to exploit them in their ever cruel, swim-with-dolphin attraction.

The only circumstance where marine species should be held in captivity is when they are injured or sick and need care in captivity before they can be returned to the wild.  Helping them to heal after their rescue, build strength under rehabilitation and then releasing them back to the region they were found, contributes to the survival of the species in the wild. SeaWorld is a prime example of an establishment that gained credibility by employing scientists who developed a noble record of rescuing stranded, sick and injured marine mammals and rehabilitating them to survive in their natural environment.  This activity was consistent with their mission statement “To work with purpose and passion on behalf of wildlife habitats worldwide, encouraging sustainable solutions through support of species research, animal rescue and rehabilitation and conservation education.” Obviously, they no longer live by this mission and infact work against it by capturing animals from the wild, holding animals captive in cramped, artificial pens and forcing them to perform unnatural stunts for food and for amusement of people and commercial gain.  SeaWorld has 50 venues in Japan alone.

One of Sea World’s worst offenses is their determination to hold on to Tillikum, a wild caught male orca from Iceland. His emotional welfare is so poor he continues to kill people. SeaWorld justifies his enslavement as well as other marine mammals with buzz words like “conservation” and unsubstantiated phrases such as “we are contributing to the conservation of the species” in response to protests from people about Sea World’s use of marine mammals for entertainment and profit.  Rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing animals back into their natural environment works truly towards conservation of animals.

SeaWorld needs to stop capturing marine mammals, and refocus their work back towards fulfilling their mission statement. As a first step, they must immediately discontinue their demeaning circus-style shows with animals. They also need to stop the captive breeding of marine species like orcas because they cannot be held humanely in captivity.  It is paramount that they begin the rehabilitation process of the individual captive animals and prepare for their release back to the regions of the world from they were originally caught.

This is an incredible opportunity to maximize the Save Japan Dolphins Coalition’s (SJDC) efforts to stop the slaughter and urge Ms. Mizuho Fukushima, Japan’s new Minister of State for Consumer Affairs and Food Safety to make public the health risks associated with eating dolphin meat and institute a ban on it’s sale without delay.

With The Cove set to be released in Japan this year, the primary goal of the SJDC will be to use the film as a medium to convince the Japanese public to oppose the cruel hunt and sale of dolphin meat throughout their country. So far, only 600 out of 126,000 million people in Japan have seen the film and those who did were completely outraged.

Our aim is to prevent the Japanese government from issuing 23,000 permits this fall and with the likelihood that dolphins will continue to be tainted with mercury and other harmful chemicals in the future, an end to the dolphin hunt once and for all.

IDA's Matt Rossell rallying the crowd.

Yesterday protesters from IDA and the Sea Lion Defense Brigade confronted wildlife officials responsible for the lethal removal of the protected sea lions, to voice concerns and ask questions about a plan that is misguided, has not met the criteria set forth in Section 120 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, fails to accurately identify specific sea lions as required by law, and will do nothing to resolve issues that endanger salmon populations.

Fishing quotas for salmon on the Columbia River this year were raised to 16 percent from last year’s 13 percent, while sea lions at the Bonneville Dam are being killed for eating what will likely be only about one percent of the 2010 spring run. These wildlife agencies are not making sound, biology-based decisions regarding salmon recovery. And the agencies’ track record has been abysmal, with multiple incidents of malfunctioning traps and seven sea lions who have died unintentionally in state custody.

We couldn’t buy better exposure for our campaign to stop the slaughter, consumption, and live capture of dolphins in Japan. A billion people, including media outlets around the world, are slated to tune into the event that will undoubtedly create a surge of pressure directed at the Japan Fisheries Agency to stop allowing dolphins to be slaughtered, and their mercury-laden meat to be eaten by Japanese citizens.

We are so thrilled that The Cove will be released this year in Japan, because combined with the exposure through the Oscars, the Japanese government will no longer be able hide the issues behind media blackouts.

Whether The Cove wins Best Documentary or not, this is a critical victory for getting the information to the Japanese public!

Thanks to your letters to the European Parliament concerning  the seal hunt in Canada last year, the European Union (EU) responded with a  landslide vote to prohibit the sale of seal based products.  The great  news is it goes into effective this year!  With that measure in place, we  must now continue our focus on flooding Canadian Ambassadors or High  Commissioners with letters supporting the Harb Bill, which would end the  seal hunt in Canada.  The Canadian government must continue to hear  how much we still want the seal hunt to end.  In order to help push this  bill along, we need to make a concerted effort to educate others to take  similar action as well.

We have the unique opportunity to maximize our  efforts this year as there are other significant factors helping to reduce  overall incentives for sealers to kill.  The price for pelts last year  was terrible ($14/ each) and proved to be reason enough for many sealers to  stay home.  Ice conditions were also poor and provided less than optimal  conditions necessary for sealers to run around beating seals.  Under  similar circumstances this year, if sealers are really interested in the hunt,  they will have to spend more money on fuel to travel further north in order to  find more seals and suitable conditions to slaughtering them.  On top of  those factors to consider, they also now have to contend with an EU ban on  seal products, so there aren’t going to be too many buyers for seal skins.

This year, ice conditions are reportedly lower than they  have been in decades.  While this will deter many sealers from going out  to kill animals, poor ice conditions also have a negative impact on seal  populations.  Harp seals require compacted ice in order to give birth and  nurse their young.  Without ice in their normal birthing range, seals  have to travel farther north to find suitable habitat or give birth on beaches  that can be easily accessible by man.  Others may not have time or the  physical capacity to make an extended journey and will be forced to give birth  underwater where the pups will die.

The majority of Canadians are in  favor of the seal hunt ending, as are so many others compassionate  people around the world. The Canadian government must continue to  receive pressure both from within Canada as well as the international  community if the hunt in Canada is ever to end permanently.

For  more information on how you can help, please go to:  http://www.idausa.org/marine_mammals.html

Tillikum preforming at Sea World - Photo Credit : Reuters: Mathieu Belanger

Reporters are calling it a sad day at Seaworld. For the animals, everyday is a sad day at Seaworld. Tillikum, an orca (commonly known as a “Killer Whale”), attacked and killed his trainer at SeaWorld in Orlando on Wednesday. While IDA has the deepest sympathy for the trainer’s family and their tragic loss, the ongoing misery these intelligent, long-lived, socially complex animals cannot be comprehended.

Killer Whales travel long distances each day, sometimes swimming in a straight line for a hundred miles, other times remaining in a certain area for hours or days, moving several miles along a coastline and then turning to retrace their path. These marine mammals can dive up to several hundred meters and stay underwater for up to half an hour. They spend only 10 to 20% of their time at the surface.  In captivity, Killer Whales must spend up to 80% of their time at the surface of the water seeking scraps of food and attention.

This is theprobable cause of the dorsal fin collapse, because without the support of water, gravity pulls these tall appendages over as the whale matures. Collapsed fins are experienced by all captive male orcas and many captive female orcas, who were either captured as juveniles or who were born in captivity.  They have been observed in only about 1% of orcas in the wild.

In captivity, killer whales must swim in circles or constantly peer through the fences (stereotypical behavior) or floating listlessly on the surface of the water. These behaviors indicate that the animal is bored and psychologically stressed. Wild Killer Whales rarely lie still and with the entire ocean at their disposal, they would have no need to swim in circles!

This particular orca, Tilikum, has an especially bad situation.  He is the oldest living captive orca which means he has suffered the most psychologically and physiological stress of all. The park plans to adjust the protocol with which to handle him, and is not ruling out using him in shows and will continue to use him as a stud.

A 12,000 pound orca should not be in a concrete and chlorine tank coerced to give “kisses” and do tricks.  SeaWorld seems to have no problem exploiting animals by confining them permanently and putting their employees and the public at risk to make money- lots of money.
I do believe that most of the trainers love the animals they manipulate. Somehow the trainers and the aquaria justify what they are doing with words like “conservation” and “education”, but ripping these majestic creatures from the vast oceans, separating them from their families, and forcing them to swim circles till their dorsal fin droops from lack of deep diving is heartless. If only they could wake up to the reality of exploitation as Rick O’Barry, the trainer of the famous dolphin Flipper did. O’Barry has since denounced keeping marine mammals in captivity and has dedicated himself to end the dolphin slaughter in Japan.

When orcas first arrive into the tank, they attempt to use their sonar, but it just bounces off the walls and becomes maddening, so they cease using sonar for communication. It is well known that emotional and psychological factors play a huge part in the behavior of these sentient animals who are able to exhibit cognitive abilities similar to us, humans. It has also been observed that confining such intelligent animals with complex social systems in small spaces leads them to exhibit neurotic behaviors. One can only imagine how the stress of captivity in completely unnatural surroundings compounded by the abnormal demands from training and performance could lead to tragic results.

It’s time to put a stop to snatching such majestic animals from the wild for unnecessary exhibitionism. It’s time to honor their undeniable right to freedom and end the breeding of such animals in captivity for the animal’s well-being , as well as for our own human safety.

Please click here to send an e-mail to Hamilton James, the President of The Blackstone Group, which operates SeaWorld. Urge SeaWorld to get out of the cruel business of keeping marine mammals in captivity.