Assessing whale numbers is no easy task. The giant mammals traverse vast tracts of oceans, making analysis of their well-being arduous and time-consuming. Many whale species have clearly recovered since the imposition of a global ban on commercial whaling in 1986. But, while they may no longer be in danger
of extinction, their status - whether endangered, like the blue whale, vulnerable, like the humpback, or sufficiently recovered to permit sustainable harvesting - is arguable. And argued it certainly is among members of the International Whaling Commission.
The commission meeting in Japan has resulted in no lessening of tensions between those nations, including New Zealand, opposed to whaling and those seeking a return to commercial whaling. In tit-for-tat proceedings, anti-whaling nations have again barred Iceland from joining the commission, and the pro-whaling bloc has again torpedoed a proposed South Pacific whale sanctuary. If anything, attitudes are hardening - so much so that, increasingly, there is a danger that Japan and Norway, having failed to gain control of the commission, will walk out and resume uncontrolled whaling.
Preventing such a collapse, with its dire consequences for whales, may require compromise. But New Zealand should not back away from its desire to see a southern sanctuary. A United Nations study has warned that a quarter of the world's mammals face extinction within 30 years as their habitats are threatened. The Geo-3 Report makes sobering reading. Providing a safe haven for our largest marine mammals may not solve the wider problem but it would, at least, contribute to protecting the biodiversity that is essential to the planet's well-being.
