TROUBLED WATERS - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

commercial whaling. Times to death of over an hour are not uncommon (Table 3, chapter 6). ASWpresents some of the most profound welfare concerns, yet the IWC has been slow to enforce evenminimum welfare standards in these hunts. This, in part, may be due to the inherent conflicts withcultural aspects of the hunts that enforcement would entail. For example, the use of more modernequipment for chasing and slaughtering whales may conflict with the cultural integrity of thesehunts. To avoid the abuse of this category of whaling it is vital that the IWC only considers ASWquotas for indigenous peoples with legitimate and traditional subsistence needs for whales. Forexample, in recent years, there have been attempts by whaling nations to blur the boundaries betweensome ASW and commercial hunts. For example, Japan argues that an exception should be made tothe commercial whaling moratorium for special quotas to be allocated to whaling towns that have atradition of small-scale coastal whaling. It can be argued that, in those ASW hunts where the use ofmore modern equipment is deployed, such as modern vessels and communication technology, that atthe very least the killing methods should also be ‘modern’ to ensure that suffering is minimised.There are also significant inconsistencies in the manner in which individual ASW hunts are dealtwith by the Commission, for example not all ASW hunts have a strike limit 1 (see chapter 6), asignificant welfare consideration that relates to the potential for whales to be struck and lost.126A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICATIONS OF MODERN WHALING ACTIVITIESMany thousands of small cetaceans are also hunted around the world on an annual basis. Themethods used to kill these animals are varied, data on these kills are sparse, and these hunts arelargely unregulated. As a result there are serious welfare implications for the species hunted andsignificant concern that the trade in small cetacean meat may help to maintain the market incetacean products generally (see chapter 7). Debate continues within the Commission as to whichcetaceans are within its competency. Whaling nations argue that there is no obligation to report dataon small cetacean kills to the IWC. As a consequence, there is no ‘centralised’ oversight, evaluation orcontrol of the killing methods used during most cetacean hunts and thousands of small cetaceansprobably die at the hands of inexperienced hunters using substandard equipment or techniques. Forexample, Japan claims that the Baird’s beaked whale, which is a large animal reaching 12.8 metres inlength, is a small cetacean 2 that falls outside the competence of the IWC. Japan, therefore, declines todiscuss the killing methods employed in these hunts, which are of particular concern in terms ofwelfare, not least because they may involve the use of the cold harpoon (see chapter 7). The FaroeIslands also kill pilot whales on an annual basis and opportunistically hunt the bottlenose whale(another large toothed whale 3 ) and some dolphin species. The same killing methods and instrumentsare employed for bottlenose whales (and other cetaceans), as are used for pilot whales.Assessment of killing and capture methodsThe methods used to kill cetaceans for commercial or aboriginal subsistence purposes contrastsharply with the requirements, and widespread expectations, for the slaughter of domestic animals forfood (see chapter 12). Furthermore, meticulous protocols have been developed for the efficienteuthanasia of stranded cetaceans. The employment of ‘best practice’ is essential if the euthanasia ofboth stranded cetaceans and animals killed for commercial purposes is to be achieved with theavoidance of suffering. It is also not unreasonable to propose that such standards should also beapplied to the slaughter of all cetaceans.There is a considerable disparity between the accuracy implicit in the effective euthanasia of strandedcetaceans and the inferior methods used during whaling activities (see chapter 10). During allwhaling activities the potential for accuracy is greatly hindered by the circumstances under which