Resurrecting the “Compromise Plan” to Legitimize Commercial Whaling

The agenda for the 2011 annual meeting of the IWC has been published and much to the surprise of the conservation NGO community, it includes a Resolution by Chile, New Zealand, and the United States to “Maintain Progress on the Future of the IWC” (the ‘Future of the IWC’ being an innocuous name for the [...]

Japan Awash in a Tsunami of Complexity

The 2011 meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in St. Helier, Jersey (UK) promises to be a compelling, lively event, with unexpected developments in Japan, Iceland, and Norway unfolding in ways that will likely shape the direction of the withering, legally-contested commercial whaling industry in the near future. The following provides an overview of [...]

Norway… Whaling in Crisis (Again)

By far, the most encouraging news on the whaling front is that Norwegians appear to be losing their collective appetite for whale meat. While domestic consumption has been diminishing for a number of years, many supermarkets are now refusing to purchase the meat. Furthermore, Norway cannot export the whale meat it does catch. Japan will [...]

Iceland Under Pressure

After traveling to Japan to assess current trade opportunities, Icelandic whaling magnate Kristjan Loftsson, CEO of Hvalur whaling company, announced to a group of his employees that Iceland’s fin whale hunt will be postponed indefinitely. Hvular employs up to 150 people during the summer whaling season, and an unconfirmed number are expected to lose their [...]