http://www.whaling.com/p/e9/256bcee6c406.html Commission Debates Whale Numbers Sat 27 Apr 2002
SHIMONOSEKI, Japan (AP) - Scientists debated research Saturday that indicates minke whale populations may be far smaller than previously thought - a contention that if proven would seriously hurt Japan's case for a resumption of commercial whaling.
The number of minke whales in the southern hemisphere is the focus of the International Whaling Commission's scientific committee meeting in this southern Japanese fishing town, where about 170 scientists from the commission's 25 member countries have gathered for a monthlong convention.
Research conducted a decade ago estimated there were 700,000 minke whales, which can grow to 32 feet and weigh 10 tons, in the hemisphere. But results of a four-year study released last year showed there may be only one-third that number, and experts are eager to set the record straight.
IWC official Martin Harvey said the scientists will debate whether the wide discrepancy resulted from a flaw in one of the studies or an actual decline in the whale population.
Japan and Norway lead a small group of pro-whaling countries. They argue that some whale species are now so plentiful that the IWC moratorium on commercial whaling - imposed in 1986 after generations of whaling drastically reduced populations - is no longer needed.
The commission is expected to vote at the end of its May 20-24 plenary session on whether to end the ban. Even if the scientists don't reach a conclusion about the minke population, the ban is likely to stay in place because lifting it would require support from three-quarters of the voting IWC member states.
While it banned commercial whaling, the IWC permits scientific hunts and the resulting sales of whale meat.
Japan insists that data from its research whaling missions, which began in 1987, show that whale populations have now grown so large they are threatening the marine environment by eating too much fish.
''There is simply no truth to claims the number of whales has fallen,'' said Toshiharu Tarui, an official with the Foreign Ministry's Fisheries Agency.
Opponents of commercial whaling say that without a reliable system for monitoring hunts, whaling fleets might kill more than they are allowed.
''The problem is there's no way to enforce effective monitoring of hunts,'' said British scientist Laila Gadler.
Many experts say Japan and the Soviet Union exceeded IWC hunting quotas that were in effect before the ban was imposed.
Japan denies the charges and says it has devised a monitoring system involving on-board inspectors and DNA registration.
''We are prepared to follow the rules,'' said Joji Morishita, leader of Japan's scientific delegation. ''We recognize the need to sustain whale populations.''
Residents of Shimonoseki, a once-thriving whaling city, favor the resumption of commercial hunting.
Junko Kojima, the manager at Kujirakan whale meat restaurant, wore a government-commissioned T-shirt bearing the slogan: ''Whales are increasing. Fish are decreasing. People are in trouble.''
