Over 20,000 whales have been killed since commercial whaling was banned by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in 1986. Why? Because a loophole allows any nation to issue itself a permit to kill any number of whales "for the purposes of scientific research." After they have finished their “research” they are allowed to sell the whale meat in supermarkets.

Thank you for receiving Animals and Environment Alerts from Care2 and for caring about the future of the whale population. Please take action today to stop the use of “scientific” whaling. http://www.care2.com/go/z/18283

Commercial whaling during the last century decimated almost allof the world's whale populations - between 1925 and 1975, it is estimated that more than 1.5 million whales were killed in those 50 years alone.

Despite being largely protected from hunting during the last 30 years, whales have not yet recovered from the commercial hunting of the last two centuries. Whales have slow birth rates, which means they are slow to rebound from human exploitation. Think about this: there are only 300 right whales remaining. Even small-scale whaling could cause this magnificent species to go extinct. Every effort must be made to protect whales from extinction. Please take action today. http://www.care2.com/go/z/18283

Japan engages in "scientific" whaling even though only 11% of Japanese adults support the killings. Now, Iceland has announced a three-year "scientific" whaling program that failed to meet the approval of the IWC's Scientific Committee because it failed to demonstrate any plausible use for this type of research. Help prevent the senseless killing of more whales. http://www.care2.com/go/z/18283

Your action today is an important step to protecting the fragile whale population.

Thank you for caring,

Lisa Sock
Care2 & ThePetitionSite