The seal hunt:
A red stain on the Canadian ice.
By Paul Glendenning
The Hamilton Spectator
(Mar 20, 2006)
The Canadian government has unleashed its new plans in its apparent war
against Canada's seals.
Waiting until March 15, the International Day of Protest against the Seal
Hunt, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans finally revealed a new
five-year plan. This plan also reveals the quotas for the grey seal hunt,
which already occurred this year despite devastation by storms and poaching.
This year, the quota for the harp seal is 325,000. In addition, in what
appears to be an attempt to consolidate native support, an additional 10,000
are to be killed by aboriginal hunters. The quota for hood seals is again
10,000.
Yet the report also reveals they are considering a return to killing
"bluebacks," which are pups still being weaned and whose hunting became
illegal at the same time "whitecoat" harp seal hunting was banned. The
distinction is small but significant for although both categories protect
baby seals for only 12 days at the most, the banning of killing pups that
young was what reduced international pressure to end the hunt.
The quota for grey seals is set at 10,400. This number is, in fact, higher
than the original 10,000 proposed two years ago for 2005-06. This is also in
spite of the fact that the government estimated 75 per cent of grey seal
pups were lost to severe storms.
According to a report prepared for the government by the Canadian Veterinary
Association, 2 per cent of the seals taken may be inhumanely killed. This
percentage was calculated on the basis that clubbing and shooting baby
seals, is on the whole, humane killing.
For this year, that 2 per cent would mean inhumane suffering by 208 grey
seals, 6,700 harp seals and 208 hood seals. Seal defenders believe the
numbers are much higher.
Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn is well known for his support of seal
hunting, a popular activity in Atlantic Canada when the fishing season is
closed. When he was fisheries critic for the Opposition, he was quoted as
saying there are "too many seals" and that the "rapidly growing herds" need
to be dealt with, as they are a "serious source of (fish) predation.'' Since
becoming minister, he has defended the hunt and criticized recent celebrity
calls to end it.
Hearn also supported a 2005 study that recommended keeping northern cod off
the endangered species list, aggressively promoting the expansion of markets
for seal products and increasing seal hunt quotas in accordance with market
conditions.
Support for the seal hunt by fishermen appears to be due to their belief
that seals are in competition with them for fish and are the cause of
dwindling fish stocks. This is supported by many politicians and some media,
but not by science.
While politicians such as Hearn divert Atlantic Canada's hostility about
fisheries management onto vulnerable seal pups, Department of Fisheries and
Oceans scientists disclaim any notion that seals are the cause of fishery
decline and fish stock collapse. Seals eat a wide range of sealife,
including the predators of valued fish such as cod. What is not being
adequately explored is the lack of protection for cod from foreign
overfishing and the use of trawling technology. It took the collapse of the
cod fishery to acquire much protection for this endangered fish and complete
protection is still avoided by politicians.
In addition, Canada has sided with countries such as Portugal to fight a
United Nations ban on bottom trawling. Portugal has the distinction of being
the country most cited for fishing violations in Canadian waters.
Trawling involves the use of weighted nets to scrape the ocean floor. This
environmentally destructive method destroys the integrity of the ecosystem
and is a major, if not the primary, cause of fishery collapse and the lack
of proper recovery.
Canadian fishermen do not use bottom trawling, but Canada gains much income
from allowing it to take place in Canadian waters. In 2001, bottom trawling
brought in about $500 million to the Canadian government, 28 per cent of the
total landed value of the fisheries.
Meanwhile, the seal hunt continues to damage Canada's reputation. Countries
such as Britain, the U.S., Mexico and Greenland pull away in disgust at the
brutality and ban all seal products. An international boycott of Canadian
seafood is also on the rise, begun by seal defenders in the hope of removing
the hunt's economic value.
Only when Canada faces the true causes of Atlantic poverty and desperation
will Canada recover.
The furor over the seal hunt appears to be masking real improvement and its
end would be a strong step in the right direction. But there is a long and
winding road ahead to fix years of mismanagement and misdirection.
There is a new government in power and with it a chance to start in a new
and sustainable direction.
Should Prime Minister Stephen Harper decide to let the hunt continue to
rise, a true opportunity will be lost and foreshadows a bleak future ahead
for both seals and sealers alike if not for all of Canada.
Paul Glendenning lives in Hamilton
Letters to Loyola Hearn, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, can be e-mailed to:
Contact Us HOME
