Iceland's whaling season began recently, kicking off a bloody whale hunt that could lead to the death of 100 minke whales.
Iceland is one of only two countries worldwide that still authorizes commercial whaling. About half of the whale meat from this year's hunt is intended for domestic sales in Iceland, while the rest of the quota will be sold to Japan.
Sign the petition and tell the Icelandic government to reduce this year's whale hunt quotas immediately – and to ban whaling forever.
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"The first batch of meat will be in stores by the weekend."
– Gunnar Bergmann Jonsson, manager of the minke whaler association.
Dear Minister Jón Bjarnason,
I am deeply disappointed to hear that Iceland began its whaling season this year with a quota of 100 minke whales that can be killed from May to late September.
I strongly urge you to reconsider this plan by reducing this year's whale hunt quotas immediately and working toward a full ban on whaling in Iceland.
[Your personal comments will be added here.]
As a wildlife lover and environmentalist, I am concerned about the future of whales, especially as global warming causes rapid changes in their ocean habitats with unknown impacts on these beautiful and majestic creatures.
I am also concerned that your government is clearly sensitive to the impact of its whale hunting industry on tourism, since whaling is banned close to the harbor and the first whales are usually killed in a bay just outside of Reykjavik. Clearly a more effective effort to protect Iceland's tourism industry and popular whale watching businesses would be to ban the brutal whaling program completely.
And as a traveler and consumer, I would strongly consider visiting Iceland to whale-watch, but only if your country bans whaling.
Thank you for considering my comments. I look forward to your swift action to ensure a complete ban on whaling in Iceland.
