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not is broached several times each year, provided this does not become a reality, it does create
tourism awareness and the public debate has positive impacts on the whale watching industry in
Iceland. However, in March 1999, Iceland’s parliament released a motion calling for the resumption
of whaling at the earliest opportunity. This statement resulted in several cancellations of holidays
booked to Iceland providing an indication of the negative impact whaling would have on the tourism of
Iceland. Provided whaling does not resume in Iceland, there exists outstanding potential for further
growth and development of whale watching.
11.4.3 Greenland (self-governing territory of Denmark)
Whale watching has been listed with the national Greenland tourism office as an activity in Greenland
since the mid-1990’s and in 1998 recorded a total of 2500 whale watchers, 80% of whom are
Europeans. Two main operators offer tours. Although whales are still hunted in the northern regions
of Greenland, sustainable whale watching is considered to provide a valuable contribution to local
economies. The potential to view rarely seen Arctic cetaceans makes Greenland a unique location
for whale watching, although tourism to the area needs to be strictly controlled so as to prevent
damage to the delicate ecosystems. No guidelines or legislation currently exists relating to whale
watching in Greenland.
11.4.4 United Kingdom
Whale watching in the United Kingdom was initiated in the mid-1980’s but only became a dedicated
tourist attraction in 1989. In 1998 over 120 000 whale watchers were reported, yielding more than
U$8 million in total expenditure annually. Although there are reported to be more than 40 operators
offering full or part-time marine mammal watching, the majority of tourists were not attracted to the UK
solely for whale watching. With more species of dolphins occurring along these shores than whales,
the former tends to attract more tourists and is a more reliable marketing tool. Tours are conducted
from a wide range of vessels including sailing vessels, inflatables, motor cruises and former fishing
vessels. Most trips are 2-3 hours in length, some were a full day and others can be anything from a
week to ten days in length. There is a strong seasonality to the whale watching industry, peaking in
northern hemisphere mid-summer when winds are lightest and temperatures highest. The Moray
Firth and Western Isles areas of Scotland dominate the whale watching industry in the UK with Wales
and England only having three operators each. The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin trust has raised
awareness and issues of conservation on the Mull and in the Hebrides, both important whale
watching locations.
All cetaceans in the UK are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The UK is also
party to the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic and Northern Sea
(ASCOBANS) and to the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats
(the Bern Convention). Although no formal set of legislation exists for the management of whale
watching activities, a guideline document provides recommendations for minimising disturbance to
cetaceans from recreation at sea. Where they exist, these guidelines compliment existing local
guidelines. The general guidelines provide very broad recommendations on distance of approach,
angle of approach, length of encounter etc. to minimise disturbance. The Sea Watch Foundation and
the Wales Code of Conduct for watching dolphins specify for one boat to remain at least 100 m from
marine mammals (these areas are more focussed on dolphin viewing) or three boats to remain one
kilometre from marine mammals. The Scottish Code of Conduct for watching Minke Whales specifies
that three boats are to remain at one kilometre distance from the whales and one boat, 200 m
distance from minke whales, unless the whales approach the boat. Other rules, similar to those in
other countries, relating to angle of approach, noise levels, speed etc. also form part of the guidelines.
The best strategy for the United Kingdom seems to be to promote marine nature tours rather than
focus specifically on whale tours. The strength of the British currency currently deters international
tourists from engaging specifically in marine tours in the UK. Scotland appears to have the greatest
potential for expansion of marine wildlife tourism requiring focussed effort and appropriate resource
management mechanisms to be in place. High quality tours with emphasis on education and
research are required if the UK is to remain in the global whale watching market.
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