BBC News |
Dee Estuary cockle beds to open on time with restrictions
BBC News Cockle beds on the Dee Estuary in Flintshire will open on the usual date this year after being opened later and for a limited time in 2015. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) said the beds would open on 1 July. This follows the introduction of a licensing ... |
Tempo.co |
Bengkulu College Students Plant Mangroves in Jenggalu Estuary
Tempo.co CO, Bengkulu - Dozens of college students of the Bumi Rafflesia Student Association planted hundreds of mangrove, sea almond, and casuarina trees in the coastal areas of Bengkulu City, Bengkulu Province. "Mangrove planting is a testament to our concern ... |
Tempo.co |
Bengkulu College Students Plant Mangroves in Jenggalu Estuary
Tempo.co Therefore, the mangrove habitat in the area should be preserved to resist erosion, Rahmansyah noted. The mangrove ecosystem in Jenggalu Estuary is one of the preserved habitats as a part of the Pantai Panjang Natural Park that is managed by the Natural ... |
Lost Coast Outpost |
Large Fish Kill at Mad River Estuary 'Not Armageddon,' Says State Fish & Wildlife Dept.
Lost Coast Outpost The fish, primarily sardines, likely got carried into the estuary by the incoming tide, Hughan said, and when the tide ebbed the fish became trapped in the warm, oxygen-depleted water. “According to a biologist up there this was a naturally occurring ... |
In 1930, the deep-sea explorer William Beebe became the first to observe “marine snow,” an ever-present undersea shower of flocculent organic particles composed of dead phytoplankton, zooplankton fecal pellets, and other nutrient-rich detritus. Globally, marine organic particles transport billions of tons of carbon each year from the surface to the deep ocean. The “valves” controlling this carbon flux are none other than microscopic collectives of marine microorganisms, which assemble on and collectively degrade sinking organic particles. However, how marine microorganisms self-assemble into communities on particles, and how these dynamics shape particle degradation, remains unclear.
Microscale microbial community successions
A new study, published recently in Nature Communications and led by MIT graduate student Manoshi S. Datta and MIT Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Professor Otto X. Cordero, in collaboration with professors Martin Polz from CEE and Jeff Gore from the MIT Department of Physics, sheds new light on this area.
Traditionally, it has been difficult to characterize community assembly processes and their drivers on wild marine particles, since these particles can vary widely in age, size, and chemical composition. Therefore, the team used an alternative, “semi-wild” approach, in which they immersed synthetic, chemically defined particles in natural coastal seawater. This approach allowed the team to track the process of community assembly on particles with unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution.
The research shows that microorganisms in the ocean self-assemble into communities on particles through rapid sequential turnover: Certain bacterial taxa attach to and colonize particles, but leave in a matter of hours, only to be replaced by new bacterial taxa. This colonization sequence was surprisingly reproducible and followed a characteristic ecological pattern known as a “primary succession.” At early stages of succession, “pioneers” — bacterial taxa that were adapted to seek out and degrade organic particles — dominated particle-associated communities. However, pioneers paved the way for “secondary consumers,” bacterial taxa that were unable to degrade particles, but could exploit metabolic byproducts from pioneers in order to grow. Interestingly, such primary successions have long been observed in temperate forests. This new study shows that similar ecological dynamics occur within marine microbial communities, but on much shorter temporal (hours) and spatial (microns) scales.
From microscopic dynamics to macroscopic consequences
“Our results suggest that the existing theory of successions that has been developed for plants and animals may be applicable to complex natural microbial communities,” says Cordero, the lead senior author on this work. “This could provide a basis for linking microbial community structure to their population dynamics and activity.”
Furthermore, the research suggests that, through ecological successions, microbial communities on marine particles undergo a major transition, shifting from a collective metabolism dictated by particle nutrients to one determined by the metabolic byproducts of the pioneers. As a result, it is possible that particle-associated communities in the ocean are largely composed of bacteria that cannot degrade the particle, but instead rely on interactions with pioneers in order to survive. “We think these interactions between microbes — where the majority exploits the effort of the pioneer minority — may end up having major effects on carbon turnover in the ocean,” says Cordero, adding that such interactions could shift the balance between organic matter degradation and biomass build-up by microbes in the ocean.
“Microbial ecologists have long asked how microbial communities develop and change over time and if these community dynamics have implications for the way that ecosystems ultimately function,” says Scott Ferrenberg of the United States GS Canyonlands Research Station, who was not involved in the research. “These questions remain at the frontier of microbial ecology. This study is noteworthy for its approach to understanding community development over time and for teasing apart the feeding strategies in these diminutive, yet highly important marine microbes.”
“Our ability to measure microbial communities is just now reaching the point where we can begin to understand interactions among microbes in complex natural environments and the consequences of those interactions at ecosystem scales,” says Senior Research Scientist Stephen Lindemann at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, who also did not take part in the study. “This data importantly suggests that close interactions with particle-degrading microbes sustains a high diversity of secondary consumers in marine particle-associated communities. Ultimately, all microbial politics is local, too, and the sheer amount of marine snow means local microbial interactions within these communities may drive carbon cycling at whole-ocean scales.”
ANTARA |
College students of Bengkulu province plant mangroves in Jenggalu Estuary
ANTARA ... several communities and graduates from the Bogor Agricultural Institute," Chairman of the Bumi Rafflesia Student Association Muhammad Khaisusabilillah stated here during the mangrove planting activity in Jenggalu Estuary, Bengkulu City, on Thursday. |
ANTARA |
College students of Bengkulu province plant mangroves in Jenggalu Estuary
ANTARA ... several communities and graduates from the Bogor Agricultural Institute," Chairman of the Bumi Rafflesia Student Association Muhammad Khaisusabilillah stated here during the mangrove planting activity in Jenggalu Estuary, Bengkulu City, on Thursday. |
Boris Johnson reveals he will NOT stand for Tory leadership leaving party stunned - live updates
Mirror.co.uk Boris was a strong opponent of Heathrow expansion who instead called for a 'fantasy' man-made island in the Thames Estuary. That idea was ruled out in an independent report by Sir Howard Davies almost a year ago. Sir Howard's report recommended ... and more » |
Charlotte Harbor estuary program gets award
Florida Weekly The Florida Wildlife Federation has named the Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program among 10 outstanding Florida conservationists that are being recognized for their conservation achievements. Conservation award winners are chosen from ... |
Echo |
"Prime Minister Boris": Estuary airport to return?
Echo Don't be last to know! Get the latest local news straight to your inbox. Sign up. THE prospect of Boris Johnson becoming Prime Minister has reignited fears about a new airport opening in the middle of the Thames. While mayor of London, Mr Johnson ... and more » |
Cecil Whig |
Estuary Center holds Old Tyme Fourth picnic
Cecil Whig ABINGDON — The Anita C. Leight Estuary Center, located at 700 Otter Point Road, will hold an Old Tyme Fourth of July campfire picnic on July 2. The picnic, set to run noon to 1:30 p.m., costs to $4 a person and $16 a family. The center will supply hot ... |
Echo |
"Prime Minister Boris": Estuary airport to return?
Echo THE prospect of Boris Johnson becoming Prime Minister has reignited fears about a new airport opening in the middle of the Thames. While mayor of London, Mr Johnson pushed for 'Boris island', which would act as an alternative to a third runway at ... and more » |
Clacton and Frinton Gazette |
"Prime Minister Boris": Estuary airport to return?
Clacton and Frinton Gazette THE prospect of Boris Johnson becoming Prime Minister has reignited fears about a new airport opening in the middle of the Thames. While mayor of London, Mr Johnson pushed for 'Boris island', which would act as an alternative to a third runway at ... |
File - The Fu Yuan Yu 076. Photo: Tim WattersOperation Driftnet, a campaign launched by Sea Shepherd Global in February, 2016, has successfully ended the operations of a fleet of 6 illegal fishing vessels.
In an email to Sea Shepherd Global Director Captain Alex Cornelissen, the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture has communicated the results of their investigation. The Chinese government has temporarily suspended the fishing licenses of all of the vessels owned by the company, the Dong Xing Long Ocean Fishing Company. The six vessels of the Fu Yuan Yu fleet have been ordered to remain in port for an indefinite period. In addition, the captains of the fishing vessels have had their certification as Masters permanently revoked and each vessel has been fined the equivalent of $300,000 U.S. dollars.
Captain Paul Watson, founder of Sea Shepherd said, “This was a bold campaign led by a courageous Sea Shepherd captain and his crew. This intervention has removed six very destructive poaching ships from the Indian Ocean and has sent a strong message to Chinese flagged ships around the Globe that China is serious about international fisheries law and enforcement.”
File - Fu Yuan Yu 076 cutting dangerously across the bow of the Steve Irwin. Photo: Tim WattersSea Shepherd first intervened when Captain Sid Chakravarty and his crew on board the Steve Irwin discovered, documented, exposed and pursued an illegally operating Chinese drift fleet in the Indian Ocean.
Sea Shepherd reported the activities and supplied evidence to the Peoples Republic of China. The pursuit which began in the Indian Ocean ended in Chinese waters with the Chinese Navy allowing the Steve Irwin to continue the pursuit through the South China Sea to the coast of China.
With the six ships in Chinese ports, the Chinese government took over the investigation. In response to Sea Shepherd’s initial discovery and documentation of the illegal use of driftnets (banned globally since 1992), the Chinese government ordered the six ships to return to Mainland China for investigation and inspection.
Once in port, the government investigation found that the Fu Yuan Yu 071, Fu Yuan Yu 073 and Fu Yuan Yu 076 did indeed engage in illegal activities by using driftnets in the Indian Ocean. The investigation into the other three vessels of the fleet is ongoing.
File - Crew of The MV Steve Irwin retrieve an illegal driftnet. Photo: Tim WattersCampaign leader, Captain Sid Chakravarty said, “These are severe penalties and the actions of the Chinese government clearly illustrate that they view fisheries crime very seriously. Sea Shepherd would like to thank the Chinese government for their cooperation with the investigation and we appreciate the recognition of the success by the government of China.”
Sea Shepherd has once again followed the template of coordinating international efforts to tackle international fisheries crimes and would like to credit the success of this campaign to the combined efforts of the Chinese government, INTERPOL, the crew of the Steve Irwin, Sea Shepherd Legal and Sea Shepherd Global.
Below is the email received from the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture:
Dear Captain Alex Cornelissen,
First of all, on behalf of China fishery competent authority, I would like to express our sincerely appreciation for your and the Sea Shepherd Global's timely notification and constant attention regarding the case of illegal driftnet fishing by some Chinese fishing vessels in the southern Indian Ocean. We attached great importance to this case and immediately conducted a detailed and comprehensive investigation as soon as we received your email below. I wish to take this opportunity to inform you the investigation outcomes the actions we have taken as follows.
We ordered the fishing vessels concerned to come back its home port immediately to accept investigation and conducted a port inspection and checked carefully all the related documents on board the fishing vessels, including customs declaration, logbook, mate's receipt, cargo manifest, as well as all the information provided by your side, and talked face-to-face with some crew members of fishing vessels concerned, we also polled the VMS track record from our platform and showed that these vessels did not called at any other port during their return course to China. From all the evidence and information we collected we could finally draw the conclusion that three fishing vessels, namely Fu Yuan Yu 071,Fu Yuan Yu 073 and Fu Yuan Yu 076 did engage in such illegal fishing activities as driftnet fishing in the southern Indian Ocean, however, we didn't find any highly migratory species on board these fishing vessels.
According to Chinese Fisheries Law, we take the following punishment to these involved fishing vessels:
Firstly, temporarily suspend the fishing license for all the fishing vessels (not only the involved three fishing vessels) of the same company. Currently, the three fishing vessels are asked to stay in port for further rectification for an indefinite duration.
Secondly, permanently revoke the captain's certification of the three fishing vessels and imposed a penalty to each captain.
Thirdly, impose the maximum fine to each of the three fishing vessels, each equivalent to around 300 thousand US dollars.
We will also inform the results to relevant RFMOs if it is necessary.
I would like thank you for your assistance and cooperation on this case.
Best regards,
Liling ZHAO
Director
Division of Deep sea Fishing,
Bureau of Fisheries,
Ministry of Agriculture, China.
Mathrubhumi English |
Rough weather: Boat capsizes off Padinjarekara estuary; 1 missing
Mathrubhumi English Purathur: A fibre boat capsized off Padinjarekara estuary after being caught in rough weather on Tuesday. One person went missing in the incident. Moideenkutty of Vakkad is missing after the boat crashed in the heavy rain and wind by around 8 am ... |
Call to declare mangrove areas as reserved forests
The Hindu Environmental activists have come out with a demand that the State government should declare all mangrove coverage areas in the State as reserved forests by going to the extent of acquiring even all private land with mangrove forests. The environment ... |
Mystery of the missing 'mangroves' solved, but who ordered the cutting?
MyPalmBeachPost Watchful residents alerted West Palm Beach officials last week, who in turn alerted State Sen. Jeff Clemens, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Congresswoman Lois Frankel, that a stand of protected mangroves had been illegally ... |
Deutsche Welle |
New life in old shrimp ponds
Deutsche Welle Mangroves were cleared in many places in Thailand to make way for shrimp ponds. But these days, many of these ponds lie idle. An initiative is trying to bring back the mangroves - which would benefit locals as well. and more » |
In which Dr. Milton Love ruins the magic behind Finding Dory with Science, but we love him anyways.
Plans for Boris Johnson's Boris Island airport on the Isle of Grain or the Thames Estuary could be revived
Kent Online With Boris Johnson a likely candidate for the Tory leadership, plans for an airport in the Thames Estuary could be back on the table. A decision on airport expansion was reportedly due be announced in the next two weeks, with some media reporting July 7. |
Kersey Sturdivant deploying the openCTD in an estuary like a boss.
OMG OMG OMG OMG, Andrew Thaler, Kersey Sturdivant and Russell Neches over at Oceanography for everyone have just published a Build Guide for the OpenCTD, the CTD you can build at home.
In case you didn’t know, a CTD is the tool that enables us to calculate the temperature, salinity and density of seawater. They are also very, very expensive. This is why the OpenCTD is so amazing. Now for a fraction of the cost, you can build your own if you need/want to. All the code and the instructions can be found on their GitHub site. And you can also build an adorable little niskin bottle for your ROV. WOOT for low cost, open source ocean observing!
The temperature fields test. Impressive.
Around the world, scientists are observing evidence of climate change — record high temperatures, rising sea levels, and melting ice sheets. But new research from MIT’s Program in Atmospheres, Oceans and Climate indicates that Antarctica and the Southern Ocean may be experiencing a period of cooling before warming takes over — and the culprit might be the ozone hole rather than greenhouse gases.
“Our study tries to address one of the most mysterious problems of recent historical climate change in the region because, in contrast to the strong global warming trend, we’ve seen persistent cooling in the Southern Ocean and sea ice expansion,” says Yavor Kostov PhD '16, a recent MIT graduate and lead author on the study published in the journal Climate Dynamics. “And our study addresses some mechanisms that could be related to this persistent cooling trend.”
Kostov, along with oceanographer John Marshall, the Cecil and Ida Green Professor in MIT’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) and colleagues, used results from computer simulations with models called coupled general circulation models (CGM) and observations to better understand how the ocean, atmosphere, and ice interact together, which could lead sea surface temperatures to fall and sea-ice to expand round Antarctica.
He attributes this to a combination of circumstances unique to the Southern Ocean encircling Antarctica: “The Southern Ocean is a very special place,” Kostov says. Without a continental barrier in the way, the winds and water can flow relatively unobstructed in a generally eastward direction around Antarctica. And unlike other parts of the world’s oceans, salinity — not temperature — governs the stratification of the Southern Ocean, so layers of cold relatively fresh water float atop warmer saltier water. Moreover, the Antarctic is a region with significant ozone depletion, primarily due to chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) emissions. Ozone depletion in the stratosphere far above the Earth’s surface can “modify the pattern of atmospheric circulation all the way down to the ocean’s surface, and this change in the westerly winds then alters the way the ocean circulates. And we study exactly the effect of this change in the [Southern] Ocean circulation,” Kostov says.
Kostov and Marshall argue that sea surface temperatures and sea-ice around Antarctica initially cool and expand, respectively, in response to ozone-related changes in surface wind trends. This is because the strengthening of the westerly winds drives cold water equator-ward away from the Antarctica, encouraging sea-ice growth. However, on longer timescales, warm water is drawn up from below resulting in warming of sea surface temperatures and sea-ice decline. However, not all models transition from a period of surface water cooling and sea-ice expansion to warming and sea-ice loss.
What, then, is the mechanism that sets the crossover timescale from cooling to warming?
“Our paper suggests that the first process — the northward transport of colder water — dominates this fast cooling response, but then over longer time scales, we have this build-up of heat below the surface that impacts the slow timescale of response — the gradual warming,” Kostov says. As the winds force cold freshwater away from the Antarctic pole, warm saltwater underneath rises to replace it. “This is a slower mechanism because this temperature inversion — cold overlying warm water — is below this well-mixed surface there of the ocean, which changes its depth seasonally,” he continued. Each winter this mixed layer reaches deeper and takes up some of the heat which builds up because of anomalous upwelling. Eddies deep within the ocean may also interfere with the upwelling of warm water, contributing to the slow warming response seen in some of the models.
The takeaway is that we’ve identified a fundamental mechanism that allows the Southern Ocean to respond to the change in westerly winds, with initial cooling, but then we show that this might be followed by gradual warming. And we relate this fundamental response to its climatological temperature gradients. So one message is: It’s important that models have the right Southern Ocean climatology to be able to get this response to this shift in the winds.
In a world that is increasingly feeling the effects of global warming, Kostov remarks that this new research can help improve climate science and inform policy. Understanding the climate mechanisms at play in the Southern Ocean can not only explain observances of cooling there, but also why the Southern Ocean is able to absorb heat from the atmosphere and how it transports this heat northward where it can be stored deeper in the ocean. This is particularly important since over 90 percent of the world’s heat from human influences is stored in the World Ocean with a major contribution from the Southern Ocean, and this in turn affects the pace of global warming. Additionally, cooling around Antarctica is often contrasted against global warming, but studies like MIT’s help to explain that Southern Ocean cooling is one part of a larger evolving picture in the Earth’s climatological record. Kostov says that their study provides yet another scientific stepping-stone towards understanding the fundamentals surrounding Antarctic climate and ocean behaviors.
This project was supported by the NASA Map program and the National Science Foundation FESD program.
Actor and activist Ross McCall on board Sea Shepherd’s MV Bridgitte Bardot, at the Faroe Islands in 2015Scottish actor Ross McCall released his 22-minute documentary short on YouTube this week chronicling his experience in the Faroe Islands.
The actor was on board the MV Bridgitte Bardot last year for Sea Shepherd’s 2015 Pilot Whale Defense Campaign, Operation Sleppid Grindini.
Every year, the Danish Faroe Islands partake in what is known as The Grindadrap. Locals in boats drive pods of pilot whales and dolphins on to their beaches where they are brutally slaughtered with retractable spears.
The Faroese insist the slaughter is a cultural tradition and affectionately refer to it as The Grind. This practice has been going on for hundreds of years on the Faroe Islands, wiping out entire family groups of dolphins and whales at one time. The Grindadrap literally translates to “the murder of whales.”
Sea Shepherd has been working to shut down The Grind in the Faroe Islands since 1983. McCall – known for such TV work as “White Collar,” “24: Live Another Day” and “Band of Brothers” - first joined Sea Shepherd on a mission to the Faroes in 2014. He travelled back a year later, cameras in tow. The result is a powerful 22-minute film, “The Grind of the Faroe Islands.”
In an essay published in the Huffington Post this week, McCall wrote about his time in the Faroe Islands and debuted his film on the world-renowned blogging site through an embedded link.
“Rape and pillage was once a tradition. Slavery too,” McCall wrote in his Huffington Post article. “We woke up, saw the light, and don’t do that in civilized society anymore. My fore-fathers would steal sheep, steal sail boats, and I’m sure, commit horrendous crimes that were once accepted in historical society. Things that still live on the memory, but are no longer practiced. My point was, we all change and adapt with the times.”
61 pilot whales were slaughtered at the Sandavágur killing beach in the Danish Faroe Isles. Photo: Mayk WendtSince 1983, Sea Shepherd has sent ten campaigns to the Faroes, saving hundreds of whales and dolphins while dealing with the arrest of Sea Shepherd volunteers and the seizure of the organization’s boats.
Faroese law states it is illegal to interrupt the killing and illegal to sight a pod of whales and not report it. To further protect their beloved Grind from outside interference, this year the Faroese enacted laws that prohibit Sea Shepherd crew from entering their waters and wearing Sea Shepherd shirts on land.
This week, in response, Sea Shepherd Global announced Operation Bloody Fjords, a new operation targeting the massacre of pilot whales in the Faroe Islands.
With years of footage of this bloodshed, Operation Bloody Fjords will include culling together decades worth of photographic and video evidence to target the Grind in legal, political, commercial and economic arenas. A full-length documentary feature will also be produced.
“The Grind has no place in the 21st Century,” said Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson. “Slaughter and cruelty based culture and tradition should no longer be tolerated….The Grind is ecologically destructive and offensively barbaric and Sea Shepherd is relentlessly dedicated to tossing this obscene tradition into the dustbin of history through education, direct action, economic pressure and legal challenges.”
TCPalm |
Gary Goforth: After 93 years, our waters are beseiged again
TCPalm Those images were commonplace before June 13, 1923, the day Lake Okeechobee discharges began dumping hundreds of millions of tons of sediment, nutrients and toxic algae into the St. Lucie River estuary. Prior to that, excess lake water flowed south to ... and more » |
By Actor and Sea Shepherd Advisory Board member Ross McCall
Faroe Islands documentary short
Actor and activist Ross McCall on board Sea Shepherd’s MV Bridgitte Bardot, at the Faroe Islands in 2015. The islands are located halfway between Scotland and Iceland.
The Faroe Islands are a magnificent spectacle. A land seeped in historical splendor and saturated in strict cultural traditions. If there was one way to describe these shores, it would be, breathtaking. If I were to describe how I was feeling this time last year, it would be easy.
Confused.
It’s strange to say that. It’s not something I’m accustomed to. I don’t think the Faroese are violent people. But I truly believe that the exhausted tradition of the Grindadrap, is perhaps, nothing more than an act of extreme, legal violence. I can’t see it being any other way. And believe me, I’ve looked.
From day one of my arrival, I had met many, beautifully friendly and hospitable locals. I also met those who didn’t shy away from telling me, through passive aggressive smiles, that they knew why I was there and that I shouldn’t try and convince outsiders to look a little closer at the Pilot Whale drives that have been taking place there for centuries. Then there were those that told me I was not wanted there. Maybe it was my face. Maybe it was my vibe. But I suspected it was more likely because of my beliefs and perhaps the company I was keeping.
61 pilot whales were slaughtered at the Sandavágur killing beach in the Danish Faroe Isles. Photo: Mayk Wendt
Neptune’s Navy: Sea Shepherds
I became aware of Sea Shepherd in 2011. I became actively involved a year later. My first taste of a campaign was September 2014, and on June 15th, 2015, I landed on those very Islands once more. I was a rookie in the grand scheme, but I had big ideas.
I had concerns about how I was going to land on foreign shores and somehow find a respectful line in order to get people to hear my thoughts on the 500-year-old tradition of the Grindadrap. A really tough thing to do when you are faced with a local distrust and questionable defenses. Sea Shepherd is an incredible organization. Volunteers from around the globe who give up their time, their wage, their surroundings, to save wildlife that doesn’t have a voice to reason with. The end goal is simple. To save hundreds upon hundreds of cetaceans’ lives from the hunters of the Faroe Islands.
We may have, collectively, exhausted any form of relationship we ever had with the people from The Faroe Isles. Something we can’t take back. This happens when two opinions are so far apart. But, unlike many world-wide practices, we cannot live in the past. We must move forward, and move forward in the only way I know how. Rebuild the proverbial bridges? Sure. Remain within the guidelines of the law? The laws that have been designed to keep our opinions and beliefs tucked safely behind the closed curtains of the society that doesn’t want their horrifically visual Grindadrap to be touched? Yes. But our fight will not be pressured to go away. We will not stop protecting the ocean-life that the locals think nothing of harvesting.
A Man Called Hans
The locals are truly kind, gracious, generous.
Until it is mentioned that you oppose the Grind.
One particular day, I met up with a man named Hans. He and I met on my trip in 2014 and we interviewed each other extensively, spotlighting our beliefs in a to-and-fro conversation. We put it on film and FOX ran the piece last year.
Hans is close to my father’s age. He’s a family man. A good man. A father, a husband, a retired school teacher and now a driving instructor. He also hunts the pilot whales and actively takes his part in any Grind he is called in for. I thought it would be a good idea to sit with him again. He knew I was in the country as the press had picked it up that I was there again. We are Facebook friends, so when he instigated a meet, I agreed. We had a few things in common. Both liked football. Both liked coffee. Both liked Island life and nature. I met him in the hippest coffee joint in town. It would be well at home on Abbot Kinney in Venice. Specialty coffee, modern tunes, pretty girls working the counter. As soon as I arrived, he stood to shake my hand, I forced him into a hug. If I’m going to sit and drink with someone on the opposite side, I’d rather it be in a friendly manner. If he had other ideas, I’d have turned and walked. A guy-hug would give me an indication of where we stood. Friendly terms, was the answer.
After our hello, our obligatory compliments on how we both look, the recent football results that had the Faroese national team and supporters on a high, we got down to business. He led the way. It’s a circle. These conversations. He says his piece, I say mine.
“If they were to choose to end this tired practice, then they could, quite possibly, change anything in the world.“
-Ross McCall
Another bloody day on the Faroe Islands. Photo: Cris Cely
It’s the same opinions. The same arguments. He said they don’t inflict cruelty onto the whales and they kill them as humanely as possible. I’d retort. Yes you do and no you don’t. He then counters that they use the meat which saves them millions of Euros in traded produce from Europe. I welcomed him to the world, explaining that we all have to take in trade from other lands and we are all surviving. Neither of us belong to indigenous tribes and rely on whale meat to feed. Also, I reiterated, I don’t see homeless or starving people on the Island who could use the handout of free meat. In fact, everywhere I looked, I saw booming industry. If the Whale meat was their only choice in being able to feed themselves and their families, I’d understand that a little more. But it simply is no longer the case. He replied, they have done this for hundreds of years and who are Sea Shepherd to tell them otherwise. I agreed, it should be their choice. And if they were to choose to end this tired practice, then they could, quite possibly, change anything in the world. He liked that idea.
I pressed on, some traditions are wonderful but others should be let go. The ones that no longer serve humanity. He then continued with how no-one understands that the Grind is a worthwhile and accepted system.
So I asked him to let me see it.
Now I knew this is the exact opposite of what I wanted to do. The last thing in the world I’d ever want to witness. But I wanted to see if he would actually be willing to let an opposed outsider see their practice or whether or not he didn’t want the world to see behind the curtain and try and keep me as far away as possible. He said no. It was too dangerous for an untrained man. (I since found out that in order to gain a license to kill the whale, you need to take a mandatory course. The course is open to all and it only takes two hours to pass.)
Next he asked if he could show me around the town. I took him up on his kind offer. He drove me to the Torshavn harbor, pointed out the traditional fishing boats. Then he said he’d like to show me where he used to teach the kids, some of whom are now grown up and would occasionally stop him and say hello. The Mayor of Torshavn, I called him. Away we went. Our discussion continued.
Killing pilot whales is more humane than killing cows, he said, because the whales live a free existence until they are coerced by local fishing boats towards one of the 27 killing beaches. I don’t like that argument. In fact, I don’t see the parallels. To me, I explained, that is like saying a murder in prison is worse than a random murder on the streets. They’re both terrible. I agree that the mass production of meat farming is horrific. Led purely by greed, the agricultural world has become a business of horror. But, I think, I hope, we all know that. Comparing or defending the Grind doesn’t satisfy my questions.
But that seems to be a common theme. The same answers from everybody. Answers seemingly passed down from generation to generation.
Walking through his school, an amazingly progressive educational system, I was blown away by the resources available to the children. Science labs, wood-workshops, gyms and architecture that rival the best schools in the U.S. I met a few of his teaching colleagues, most of whom, at first, greeted me with a smile that soon turned suspicious when he mentioned my name and who I was representing.
Those who recognized me would be pleasant enough, make a comment on how they will never change, then ask for a selfie. I was only ignored by one man, who clearly could care less who I was and who’s company I was keeping. One teacher, only spoke in English for one sentence, telling me she was looking forward to eating her catch of Pilot Whale this season and didn’t care if it had Mercury in it or not, it still tasted delicious. She laughed. So did Hans. He later explained that people just wanted to tease. That they all wanted to defend their right. I understood that, because I wanted to defend mine.
Ross McCall (left) in the Danish Faroe Isles with a Sea Shepherd volunteer at right. Photo: Oden Roberts
An Outdated Practice in a Modern World
Tradition. Culture. Affordable food source. Generational rite of passage. A gift from God. All answers that, personally, don’t fit for me. Rape and pillage was once a tradition. Slavery too. We woke up, saw the light, and don’t do that in civilized society anymore. My fore-fathers would steal sheep, steal sail boats, and I’m sure, commit horrendous crimes that were once accepted in historical society. Things that still live on the memory, but are no longer practiced. My point was, we all change and adapt with the times.
There are grocery stores in every single village on the Isles, stocked fully with everything I can find in my local supermarket. Fresh food, affordable pricing. Everything that can be bought in a supermarket in London, Copenhagen and Paris, can be bought in the Faroe Isles. In fact, the Faroese have the highest per capita income in Europe and one of the highest standards of living.
The next argument that was that God will provide. I agreed. But he also provides me, right? Provides me with the ocean as much as the next person. So with that argument, I must do what I can to help save it and those who live there. For me, all the answers, all the reasons, they feel like excuses.
I’ve now seen the Grind. I’ve walked through the aftermath. The carnage. The carcasses that have been brutally sliced open at the guts. I’ve seen the fetuses. The numbers scraped into the skin. I’ve seen the locals let their children play on the bodies. Seen the knives left in the whales’ skulls. I’ve watched as they used a buzz saw to remove their heads. Watched their gall bladders being cut out. I think it’s fair to say that I do have a little knowledge of what happens there. I’ve met the men who plunge the MONUSTINGARI’S, (retractable spears), into the backs of the Pilot Whales. I’ve witnessed them do it. It’s chilling. It’s devastating.
I hear their defense of the practice over-and- over, but it is now becoming clear to me that it is nothing more than a violent act. An aggressive attack that is allowed to be justified in a land that is holding on to the past.
The carnage at Sandavágur Grind Photo: Cris Cely
I’ve met locals who claim they don’t eat the meat, but have no shame in telling me they find it beautiful to watch. Beautiful. The blood spurting. The mammals panicking and screeching in pain. The splashing of weapons, of fins. The chase. The hunt. The pure carnage of entire generations of Pilot Whales being gruesomely killed in front of one another.
You see, it’s a circus of sorts. Entertainment that brings the locals onto a frenzied beach that is now stained with blood. Pilot Whales are curious creatures. They show no fear for humans, and I’m starting to think that may be their biggest down-fall. The whalers know their target is gentle. An easy mark.
I find it ironic that they measure these killings as a showcase of their manhood. I’m sure you know how big they are, the whales, but even so, imagine the size of your car. Not your hybrid, but your Escalade. Bigger in most cases. Imagine 150-200 of them being harassed towards the shores, beached and then hooked in their blow-holes, stabbed, deep in the back of the head to snap the spinal cord, then cut around the neck as the whale holds on for dear life, before being dragged onto shore for the locals to rejoice in the festivities.
Make no mistake. The Pilot Whale drive is brutal. The Whales suffer tremendously. The explanation of them dying within a second or two are grotesquely misleading. Anyone who views the footage can see that for themselves. It is an indiscriminate killing spree.
I went there to lend a hand. Lend a voice. Lend a face. I met incredible individuals who wanted to do more than “like” an article about the slaughter on their Facebook page and travelled to those foreign shores to make a difference. Hopefully, we can thank them when this age-old blood-sport comes to an end.
Truthfully, I’ve looked, I’ve listened. I’ve allowed people to voice their side. A high percentage claim to be indifferent about the Grind. Fine if it continues, fine if it ends. But, for the staunch supporters, it ultimately comes down to the fact that this is something the whalers and locals enjoy. Something that gets the aggression out. And something they seem petrified of letting go.
Maybe it’s time they laid down their weapons on this outdated practice and let the Pilot Whales and cetaceans live as God intended. In peace.
How will it end? Public outcry? Political pressure? Maybe a little of both. Another suggestion is to not ignore it and not to look the other way. Through dialogue, through education. This is the way to bring harmony into the world. We can do that together. And maybe until the Faroese leave this practice in their historical archives, we, collectively, give a stop-over visit to these lands a miss.
A CALL TO ACTION: Faroe documentary short.
I encourage you to watch our mini-documentary. Twenty-two minutes of your time. Then, if so inclined, Retweet, FaceBook, Instagram the link. Let’s be the difference.
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