The NOAA added North Pacific humpback whales to the endangered species list in 1988 after hunting nearly drove them to extinction. Now that they have recovered to a viable population, fishing interest groups are asking for the whales to be delisted.
North Pacific humpback whales currently number about 18,000 to 20,000; an estimated one-third of the worldwide population. More than half of the North Pacific whales spend the winter breeding and calving in Hawaii, which increases tourism in the area.
Fishing interest groups claim they're not interested in whaling or decreasing competition for fish. A representative from the Hawaii Fisherman's Alliance states, "You cannot add species after species after species [to the endangered list] without evaluating whether there are species that should come off." This is not a concrete reason to delist humpback whales, and it's suspicious that fishing groups are so focused on delisting that particular species. It seems that removing humpback whales' protected status could have devastating consequences down the road.
Please sign the petition to convince the NOAA to keep humpback whales on the endangered species list!
Dear National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association,
We are concerned with your decision to reconsider the endangered status of U.S. humpback whales 25 years after they were nearly hunted to extinction.
As you know, North Pacific humpback whales currently number about 18,000 to 20,000; an estimated one-third of the worldwide population. More than half of the North Pacific whales spend the winter breeding and calving in Hawaii, which increases tourism in the area.
Fishing interest groups claim they're not interested in whaling or decreasing competition for fish. A representative from the Hawaii Fisherman's Alliance states, "You cannot add species after species after species [to the endangered list] without evaluating whether there are species that should come off." This is not a concrete reason to delist humpback whales, and it's suspicious that fishing groups are so focused on delisting that particular species. We are concerned that removing humpback whales' protected status could have devastating consequences down the road.
We respectfully urge you to to keep humpback whales on the endangered species list. Thank you for taking the time to read and consider our petition.
