Unusual alliance aims to protect blue whales
A row over a 28km stretch of ocean is hampering an attempt to protect a community of blue whales off the coast of Sri Lanka, with an unlikely alliance of conservationists and shipping groups vying with the government.
The campaign has been growing after several blue whales were killed by container ships in recent years.
One vessel, Quartz, docked in the capital, Colombo, to fevered interest on the quayside. Draped across the bow, unknown to the crew, was the 20m carcass of a blue whale. Days later, another carcass was spotted in waters off the Sri Lankan capital. Its tail had been almost severed by a ship’s propeller.
The incidents crystallised a growing movement to protect Sri Lanka’s 1500 blue whales, which live off the southern coast in the path of one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. Conservation and industry groups have joined forces, lobbying to move the shipping lane a few kilometres south to avoid the whales’ feeding grounds.
Opposition has come from the Sri Lankan government, which is deep in debt and fighting for survival. In such circumstances, saving whales does not rank high among its priorities.
Overshadowing the debate is China, which wields growing influence in Colombo and has funded a massive overhaul of Sri Lanka’s ports. Two years ago it seized control of Hambantota port after Sri Lanka could not keep up debt repayments. The incident has raised concerns about ‘‘debt trap diplomacy’’.
‘‘It seems like a no-brainer [to move the shipping lane]. For once, we have a conservation problem with a clear solution. Conservation and shipping are on the same side,’’ said Asha de Vos, founder of marine conservation group Oceanswell. ‘‘But the government is pushing back. Economic concerns are all they can think about.’’
Sri Lanka’s blue whale population is one of the largest concentrations of the mammals on the planet, and is the only group that is non-migratory. Sailing through this idyll each day, however, are hundreds of big ships, with hundreds more fishing vessels working around them. Pushing the lane 15 nautical miles (28km) south would allow vessels to avoid the whales.
Whoever controls Sri Lanka’s ports still has to pay for them, however, and efforts to establish Hambantota as a refuelling stop have foundered. Shippers are complaining about the price of fuel as China tries to recoup its investment.
‘‘Ships will only stop at Hambantota if the price is right,’’ said one shipping boss. ‘‘If the fuel were cheaper, an extra 15 miles would make no difference.’’
Blue whales were once hunted to the brink of extinction. Their numbers have recovered since they were protected in 1946, but they remain endangered, with a population of 5000 to 15,000. – The Times