New EIA Report Slams Japan's Dolphin Hunts

A new report from the UK's Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) suggests that key whale and dolphin species are at risk of being eliminated in Japan due to overhunting.

In its report "Toxic Catch: Japan's unsustainable and irresponsible whale, dolphin and porpoise hunts," the EIA urges the government of Japan to begin to phase out its whale and dolphin hunting practices over the next decade.

The report centers around what the EIA calls small cetaceans, which include toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises. The group contends that annual small cetacean hunts in Japan constitute the largest of such hunts in the world, and chastises Japan for its lack of transparency surrounding the industry.

The report also highlights concerns about public health, as consumers of whale and dolphin meat are not informed of accurate mercury levels in the meat. The cetacean's place near the top of the ocean food chain raises the amount of mercury present in their bodies.

"The hunts in Japan's coastal waters specifically target nine small cetacean species, eight of them with Government-set catch limits which are clearly unsustainable," said Sarah Baulch, a co-author of the report.

"For 2013, the catch limits allow the slaughter of 16,655 small cetaceans, but our analysis of available scientific data raises very serious concerns about the sustainability of these hunts."

The report suggests that the striped dolphin is a poster child for the insustainability of the dolphin hunts.

"Despite strong indications of population declines, there appears to be little formal monitoring by the government of Japan," Baulch said. "For most hunted species, the majority of population estimates are based on surveys more than 20-years-old.

"In using outdated population information and lacking a scientifically rigorous method for setting catch limits, the government is displaying a lack of responsibility and is failing to implement its own policies of sustainable utilization."

Sakae Hemmi, of Japanese NGO Elsa Nature Conservancy, said: "The government of Japan's stubborn reluctance to relinquish this archaic industry is not only driving threatened marine species towards extinction, but is endangering the health of its people."