Almost every week this year has brought more news of the dire situation in which captive whales find themselves around the world:
Kiska, the lone orca at Marineland Canada, died in March after having seen all five of her calves perish in her concrete tank. She was 46 years old. 57-year-old Tokitae succumbed in August at the Miami Seaquarium despite the heroic collaboration to prep her for return to her home waters. 12-year-old Moana passed away in a crumbling tank at Marineland Antibes in France in October. His remaining family of three orcas is scheduled to be sent to Japan, where they will likely be distributed among two or more entertainment parks. The stakes could not be more urgent.
That's why the Whale Sanctuary Project is hard at work creating a seaside sanctuary for orcas and beluga whales in Nova Scotia, Canada. The sanctuary site, located in Port Hilford Bay, will provide whales formerly held in concrete tanks with a natural environment in which they can not only live, but also thrive. We recently finalized the results from three years of in-depth environmental studies at the site, which are needed to fulfill government permitting requirements and to make sure that the waters of the bay constitute a safe and healthy habitat for the whales. Our next steps include developing the site and determining which whales we will bring to the sanctuary.
No single sanctuary can accommodate all the whales who need to be retired from concrete tanks to coastal sanctuaries. That's why, as the first of its kind, the sanctuary in Nova Scotia will be a proof of concept for more to come.
This sanctuary is only possible with the support of people just like you. This first of its kind project relies on a wide network of people who have raised their hands to say that whales deserve more than concrete. Can you sign today, and say that you stand with the Whale Sanctuary Project?
Together we can begin to fulfill the dream of a time when no whales are being kept in concrete tanks anywhere and that they can all have a life that will, to the greatest extent possible, make up for what went before.
