Canadian research stops U. S. whale hunt review

Move protects distinct group of greys

The U. S. government’s longrunning review of a Washingtonbased first nation’s contentious bid to hunt grey whales off the Pacific Coast has been halted after a team of Canadian scientists discovered a genetically distinct group of 200 whales living around the CanadaU. S. maritime boundary — along with the wider population of 20,000 — could be affected by the proposed harvest.

The U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced this week that it was scuttling the original assessment of the Makah Nation’s planned whale hunt. The controversial assertion of historic aboriginal rights, with a proposed maximum of 20 whales to be killed over five years, has drawn opposition from some scientists and West Coast environmental groups.

NOAA concluded the emergence of “substantial new scientific information” related to the so- called Pacific Coast Feeding Group of 200 grey whales — which range between Northern California and Northern B. C., including waters off the Olympic Peninsula traditionally hunted by the Makah — required that the agency “terminate” the current review and start over again.

Understanding the movements and habits of the distinct population is “central to our consideration of the tribe’s request,” including the aim of preserving genetic diversity among grey whales, NOAA stated.

The issue first flared in May 1999 when Makah hunters set off in a canoe and harpooned a 10- metre grey whale. It was the first harvest by members of the tribe since the 1920s, when a critical population decline in the species prompted a voluntary end to whaling activities uniquely permitted under provisions of the Makah Nation’s treaty with the U. S. government.

The whale’s death also sparked protests from wildlife advocates and led to a series of court battles. It was eventually ruled that the Makah required a special federal exemption from U. S. mammal- protection laws prohibiting whaling. In 2005, in response to a formal request from the Makah Nation, NOAA began the environmental review process — which has now been halted.

In the meantime, however, another grey whale was harvested during an unauthorized hunt in 2007 leading to the conviction of two Makah tribal members for violating U. S. law, further stoking opposition to any resumption of whaling in the Pacific Northwest.

Now, NOAA has acknowledged recent research, conducted by biologist Tim Frasier of Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, B. C. scientist Jim Darling of the Pacific Wildlife Foundation and Trent University researchers Sharlene Koroscil and Bradley White, has forced the U. S. review panel to recast its focus to capture what’s known today about the smaller, more vulnerable population of 200 whales.

“This is an entirely sensible step — it’s the only step to take,” Darling told Postmedia News on Wednesday. “The amazing thing is how long it took to get here. It’s where the whole thing should have started over a decade ago.”

Micah Mccarty, chairman of the Makah Nation, said he was “not surprised” by the NOAA announcement.