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Asked by reynoldsm to Helen, Jenni, Mark, Martin, Stu on 21 Jun 2011.
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Jenni Tilley answered on 20 Jun 2011:
Yes. We need to respect the world around us. Whales are currently under threat and their numbers are decreasing. When things go extinct it affects the entire food chain. If we can prevent this from happening we should.
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Mark Burnley answered on 20 Jun 2011:
Most whales are if not endangered then well on the way to being endangered. Given that, I think *commercial* whaling should be banned. Also, have you noticed that whales appear to be the only creatures that need to be harpooned to death for scientific study?! 🙁
That said, inuit peoples still hunt whales for meat, but the effect this has on whale numbers is so small it is insignificant compared to the commercial whaling vessels.
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Helen O'Connor answered on 21 Jun 2011:
I agree, commercial whaling should be banned – or we risk losing yet another species (of the thousands already extinct).
Indigigenous populations who rely upon whaling should still be able to hunt whales – but as Mark said, this would not have an effect on whale numbers in the way commercial whaling does. Between 1991 and 2002, the Inuit of an area called Nunavut killed only five bowhead whales (in 11 years!) because they have a strict quota on how many they can kill from the Canadian Government.
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