A Controversial Debate: Commercial vs Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling
From hemisphere to hemisphere, sea to deep blue sea, the world is enamoured with whales. It is easy to see why this is the case, but the human-cetacean relationship is a long and complicated one. We have hunted many species to the brink of extinction and even placed them in captivity to perform tricks for our own entertainment. However, as our knowledge about their high level of intelligence, emotional complexity, and environmental necessity has developed, public opinion has drastically shifted from viewing them as a source of material gain to supporting vital marine conservation efforts. A general consensus now appears to have emerged that, in order to save our planet, we must save the whale.
A brief overview of both commercial and aboriginal subsistence whaling
Humans have engaged in organised whaling for at least 8000 years.[1] However, cetaceans are generally considered to be archaeologically invisible due to the effects of the post-glacial sea level rise after the last ice age,[2] which concealed many prehistoric coastal dwellings beneath the waves. The earliest known evidence of organised whaling can be seen in rock art at the Neolithic Bangudae site in Korea (6000 BCE),[3] with later examples also visible at the estuary of the Vyg River in North-Western Russia.[4] Both sites depict boats, drogues, harpoons, and lines being used to hunt small cetaceans, reflecting their importance in local prehistoric coastal diets and cultures.
In the context of present-day commercial whaling—in Norway, Iceland, and Japan[5]—the whale intake decreases yearly, as the demand for whale meat is at an all-time low and the whale-watching tourism industry is booming.[6] For many individuals expressing opposition to commercial whaling, this signifies that the end of the practice may soon be upon us.
With a focus on commercial whaling, it is easy to forget that some cultures, including the Inuit—descended from the Arctic Thule—and the Chukchi—Siberia—have been reliant on marine resources for hundreds to thousands of years.[7] Their cultural identities, mythologies, and in some instances survival, generally involve marine mammals. Therefore, rather than approach the whaling of these small communities with blanket opposition, it is important to note that even a single cetacean can make a significant difference in their health and overall quality of life—especially in the more remote areas of the Arctic.[8]
For communities that still practise aboriginal subsistence whaling—groups of indigenous people who have traditionally hunted and consumed cetaceans as a dietary staple for hundreds of years—every part of the mammal is used. Baleen is woven into baskets and used for fishing lines.[9] Bones are ground into broth or used as tools, gaming pieces, and ceremonial items. And, for isolated communities in the Arctic, whale meat provides vital nutrients, such as vitamin C.[10] It could thus be said that, by discontinuing indigenous whaling practices in the Arctic regions, the traditional knowledge used to survive there without importing food or other goods would be lost.
But not all aboriginal subsistence whaling is practised in the far North. For example, indigenous whaling also takes place within communities in the Faroe Islands, Indonesia, and Bequia.[11] However, some communities with arguably longer whaling traditions, including the Maori of New Zealand and the Ainu of Japan, are no longer legally permitted to practise this aspect of their culture or heritage.[12]
Commercial whaling, on the other hand, has been argued to contrast with aboriginal subsistence whaling due to the significant numbers of cetaceans killed per year, rendering the industry historically responsible for the extinctions and endangerments of many species. In addition, we have long since developed alternatives to cetacean-based products, including soaps and candles.[13]
Commercial whaling and whale population decline
Before modern maritime technological advances, it took a lot of effort to hunt a single cetacean. In particular, due to their ability to dive to depths which cannot be reached by harpoons, cetaceans often outpaced early vessels. However, as commercial whaling gained popularity throughout Northern European during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance periods—due to whale oil and baleen becoming incredibly valuable for the production of lamps, corsets, and hoop skirts[14]—population levels of various species—including the fin, blue, and humpback whale—had depleted significantly by the mid-1700s.[15]
The consequence of this depletion was that it became difficult to locate whales near the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts. As such, fleets had to expand their operations to deeper waters, including in the Arctic and the Antarctic.[16]
There is an indescribable feeling that many people experience when a dorsal fin peaks through the surface of the sea, or when they catch sight of a powerful tail or witness a cetacean leap from the water, spraying shimmering droplets with a freedom that many individuals can only dream to achieve. Those living in coastal settings may take whale, dolphin, and porpoise-spotting for granted but, with a global history of often unrestricted commercial whaling, some argue that, if unchecked, we could reach a point of never being able to witness a cetacean in their natural environment from the coastlines or small day vessels.
Technological advances made commercial whaling safer, easier, and more lucrative until finally cetaceans were being killed on a massive scale. By the end of the 1930s, over 50,000 whales were killed each year. In 1946, several countries joined together to form the International Whaling Commission (IWC) to prevent the overhunting of whales. Still, by the 1950s, whale populations were declining rapidly and, in 1986, the IWC was forced to effectively ban commercial whaling with a moratorium designed to allow endangered species to recover.[17]
Today, those in favour of commercial whaling continue to present arguments for continuing the practice—including preserving culinary heritage and increasing the number of wild fish available for human consumption by removing their natural predators.[18] In Norway, for example, it is legal to commercially hunt minke whales for food and Japan resumed commercial whaling in 2019.[19]
However, in April 2020 the Icelandic whaling company IP-Utgerd announced that it would not be hunting any whales for a second year in a row, citing a lack of demand and financial difficulties after no-fishing zones were extended off the Icelandic coast—an announcement celebrated by environmentalists world-wide, even if the move came only due to financial difficulties.[20]
The controversial debate: commercial vs aboriginal subsistence whaling
Anti-whaling and environmental groups are opposed to unsustainable commercial whaling for any reason. However, a number of those same groups are unopposed to aboriginal subsistence whaling. A difficult debate thus arises on how best to achieve a balance between a human’s freedom to practise and preserve their cultural traditions and a cetacean’s freedom to survive.
And, while aboriginal subsistence whaling communities tend to only hunt a small number per year, they are often not without criticism. Traditional hunting techniques are typically less efficient than those of commercial whaling operations, which can lead to higher ‘stuck and lost rates’—this means that a cetacean may escape with serious injuries, leading to pain and a potentially drawn-out death.[21] Some methods, including the use of underpowered rifles in Greenland—the primary killing method for minke whales—raise serious concerns about the humaneness of the technology allowed for aboriginal subsistence whaling which still need to be addressed.[22] Some argue that this could be achieved, either by enabling them to employ more accurate methods while ensuring that they keep to a strict quota, or by banning the practice entirely.
Currently, the IWC allows indigenous cultures from Greenland, Siberia, Alaska, and Bequia to hunt for subsistence. And Canada, Indonesia, and the Faroe Islands all implement their own rules and regulations for whaling.[23] Aside from perhaps those communities in Bequia, each culture is remote, far removed from supply chains that bring the rest of the world food, and each has its own way of honouring the spirit of the whale through song, story, ritual, or ceremony. In the Arctic, for example, whales are considered to be a gift from the sea and Inuit whalers believe themselves to be stewards of the lands and seas on which their populations rely for survival.[24]
Conservation efforts are gradually increasing the numbers of cetacean populations and raising awareness about the plight of marine mammals. Discussions often relate to how their survival is necessary, not only to maintain the delicate balance of the ecosystem, but also to reduce the levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere.[25]
To many, it is thus arguable that we should consider more sustainable food sources, packaging, and disposal or recycling methods,[26] lest we end up living in a world without marine mammals. And, like the first domino struck in a line, the rest of the ecosystem will surely follow.
Article tags: | -ism | heritage | environmentalism |
Conservation efforts are gradually increasing the numbers of cetacean populations and raising awareness about the plight of marine mammals. Discussions often relate to how their survival is necessary, not only to maintain the delicate balance of the ecosystem, but also to reduce the levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. Image source: Sydney Spectaculars
As commercial whaling gained popularity throughout Northern European during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance periods, population levels of various species—including the fin, blue, and humpback whale—had depleted significantly by the mid-1700s. Image source: Currier & Ives
With a focus on commercial whaling, it is easy to forget that some cultures, including the Inuit—descended from the Arctic Thule—and the Chukchi—Siberia—have been reliant on marine resources for hundreds to thousands of years. Image source: Tobias Holzlehner
Anti-whaling and environmental groups are opposed to unsustainable commercial whaling for any reason. However, a number of those same groups are unopposed to aboriginal subsistence whaling. A difficult debate thus arises on how best to achieve a balance between a human’s freedom to practise and preserve their cultural traditions and a cetacean’s freedom to survive. Image source: Grégory Lecoeur
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Sources Cited
[1] Joe Roman, Whale (Reaktion 2006).
[2] Kurt Lambeck and others, ‘Sea Level and Global Ice Volumes from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene’ (2014) 111(43) PNAS <https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1411762111> accessed 31 July 2020.
[3] ‘Daegokcheon Stream Petroglyphs’ (UNESCO) <https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5486> accessed 31 July 2020.
[4] ‘Petroglyphs of Lake Onega and the White Sea’ (UNESCO) <http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6358/> accessed 31 July 2020.
[5] Euan McKirdy, Emiko Jozuka and Junko Ogura, ‘IWC withdrawal: Japan to resume commercial whaling in 2019’ (CNN, 26 December 2018) <https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/25/asia/japan-withdrawal-international-whaling-commission-intl/index.html> accessed 1 August 2020.
[6] Ariella Simke, ‘Iceland to stop killing whales in 2020, choosing to watch them instead’ (Forbes, 10 May 2020) <https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariellasimke/2020/05/10/iceland-to-stop-killing-whales-in-2020-choosing-to-watch-them-instead/#423108743d0d> accessed 1 August 2020.
[7] ‘Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling’ (International Whaling Commission) <https://iwc.int/aboriginal> accessed 31 July 2020.
[8] Mike Fox, ‘The Inuit case for whaling’ (BBC, 24 May 2002) <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/2005773.stm> accessed 1 August 2020.
[9] Robert J Miller, ‘Exercising Cultural Self-Determination: The Makah Indian Tribe Goes Whaling’ (2000/2001) 25 American Indian Law Review 165, 175.
[10] Karen Fediuk and others, ‘Vitamin C in Inuit Traditional Food and Women’s Diets’ (2002) 15(3) <https://doi.org/10.1006/jfca.2002.1053> accessed 1 August 2020.
[11] Sarah Gibbens, ‘Killing of Orcas in Front of Tourists Could Spell End of Whaling for Island Nation’ (National Geographic, 6 April 2017) <https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2017/04/orcas-killed-tourists-st-vincent-whaling/> accessed 31 July 2020.
[12] ‘Fight for Maori whaling traditions’ (nzherald.co.nz, 5 July 2012) <https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10817502> accessed 1 August 2020.
[13] ‘Commercial Whaling’ (Whale Facts) <https://www.whalefacts.org/commercial-whaling/> accessed 30 July 2020.
[14] Meghan E Marrero and Stuart Thornton, ‘Big Fish: A Brief History of Whaling’ (National Geographic, 1 November 2011) <https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/big-fish-history-whaling/> accessed 30 July 2020.
[15] ‘The History of Whaling and the International Whaling Commission (IWC)’ (WWF, 1 June 2005) <https://wwf.panda.org/?13796/The-History-of-Whaling-and-the-International-Whaling-Commission-IWC> accessed 1 August 2020.
[16] ibid.
[17] ibid.
[18] Melissa Hogenboom, ‘Why do some countries still hunt whales?’ (BBC, 3 December 2015) <http://www.bbc.co.uk/earth/story/20151203-why-do-some-countries-still-hunt-whales> accessed 30 July 2020.
[19] McKirdy and others (n 5).
[20] Lorenzo Brenna, ‘Iceland won’t hunt any whales this year and perhaps ever again’ (LIFEGATE, 15 May 2020) <https://www.lifegate.com/iceland-stops-whale-hunting-2020> accessed 1 August 2020.
[21] Randall R Reeves, ‘The origins and character of “aboriginal subsistence” whaling: a global review’ (2002) 32(2) Mammal Review <https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2907.2002.00100.x> accessed 1 August 2020.
[22] Corinne Purtill, ‘Whaling in Greenland: To hunt or not to hunt?’ (MINNPOST, 7 October 2013) <https://www.minnpost.com/global-post/2013/10/whaling-greenland-hunt-or-not-hunt/> accessed 31 July 2020.
[23] ‘Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling’ (n 7)
[24] Reeves (n 21).
[25] Vanessa Williams-Grey, ‘Why whales can help save our planet - if we let them’ (Whale and Dolphin Conservation, 8 December 2015) <https://uk.whales.org/2015/12/08/why-whales-can-help-save-our-planet-if-we-let-them/> accessed 31 July 2020.
[26] Alejandra Borunda, ‘This young whale died with 88 pounds of plastic in its stomach’ (National Geographic, 18 March 2019) <https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/03/whale-dies-88-pounds-plastic-philippines/> accessed 1 August 2020.