Marine protected areas for whales, dolphins, and porpoises: a world ...

Habitat Protection for Cetaceans around the World 119
Notes and rationale For more information
• Established in 1974 and expanded in 1988, this park and Unesco • Born and Böcher, 1999;
biosphere reserve, called the world’s largest national park, has Hansen, 2002; Mikkelsen,
significant Arctic cetacean populations. There are also huge 1996a, 1996b
problems with hunting. It was known that hunting at a basic level • WWF Arctic Programme,
would be part of the activities in the transition zones or outside the PO Box 6784,
park but that it would be carefully managed. However, the high St Olavsplass, N-0130 Oslo,
numbers taken without sufficient research and a management plan Norway;
have caused acute concern since the mid-1990s. Since then, email: arctic@wwf.no
research has started on the exploitation levels of marine mammals • Greenland Institute of
in the area, but Greenland Home Rule and local managers also Natural Resources,
need to manage and set up an effective enforcement regime. PO Box 570, 3900 Nuuk,
• Rationale was to set aside a large Arctic ecosystem with outstanding Greenland;
bird, marine mammal and fish populations and to conserve web: http://esb.natur
resources for subsistence hunting and fishing. forvaltning.no/
GinstNatres.htm
• Greenland Home Rule,
PO Box 269, 3900 Nuuk,
Greenland
• Established shortly after home-rule government began by act of • Heide-Jorgensen and Dietz,
Ministry of Greenland on 27 May 1980, the Melville Bay Wildlife 1995; Mikkelsen, 1996b
Sanctuary was renewed in 1989 by Greenland Home Rule. The act • Contact: MP Heidesays
that the sanctuary should protect polar bears, seals, belugas, Jorgensen, Greenland
narwhals and walruses from exploitation, disturbance and other Fisheries Research Institute,
human activities but management details are unclear. WWF Arctic Tagensvej 135, 2200
considers the reserve ‘partially protected’. The reserve excludes all Copenhagen N, Denmark
hunting in an inner zone closest to the ice, and restricts hunting in • WWF Arctic Programme,
the outer zone, but hunting often occurs (Mikkelsen, 1996b). PO Box 6784,
Indeed, Melville Bay is a traditional hunting ground for the people of St Olavsplass, N-0130 Oslo,
Thule district. The Greenland Home Rule Government has been Norway;
called upon by WWF and others involved in the Circumpolar email: arctic@wwf.no
Protected Area Network Plan to sponsor new research, ‘implement • Greenland Institute of
stronger protective regulations and intensify its efforts to enforce Natural Resources,
those that already exist’ (Mikkelsen, 1996b). Since 1996 when the PO Box 570, 3900 Nuuk,
above comments were made, more research has been done on the Greenland;
exploitation levels of marine mammals in the area and this work web: http://esb.natur
should continue. But Greenland Home Rule and local managers forvaltning.no/
also need to manage and set up an effective enforcement regime. GinstNatres.htm
• Heide-Jorgensen and Dietz (1995) report that satellite tracking shows • Greenland Home Rule,
the sanctuary to be seasonally important for protecting narwhals PO Box 269, 3900 Nuuk,
from exploitation. Some narwhals from the Baffin Bay population Greenland
spend the two-month open water season feeding in the sanctuary • Zackenberg Ecological
before moving offshore into pack ice in late October. Research Operations
(ZERO), Danish Polar
Center, Copehagen K,
Denmark;
web: www.dpc.dk