CARIBBEAN (30 June 2006) -- Whale watching can become a very lucrative part of the regional tourism industry, with the potential for earning millions of dollars annually for Caribbean Governments. According to figures shown at a recent pro-whaling forum in St Lucia, that country had earned an estimated US$2.9 million from whale watching, while other Caribbean nations have also capitalised on the industry. An estimated figure coming out of the forum that could be earned by a regional whale watching industry was put at about US$24 million annually. This, from regional delegates attending the recent two-day Caribbean Whale Conservation Forum at the Marriot Resort and Royal Beach Casino, St Kitts/Nevis. The Caribbean Whale Conservation Forum was organised by one of the world's largest animal welfare bodies, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). IFAW has offices in 15 countries and is dedicated to ending the commercial exploitation of wild animals, protecting wildlife habitats and providing emergency relief to animals in crisis. As part of its global environmental mission, IFAW is opposed to all forms of commercial whaling, including scientific whaling and is commited to ending it because the organisation believes that it is cruel, unnecessary. They argue that it meets no pressing human needs and poses a serious threat to the survival of the world's remaining whales. The delegates to the forum were regional whale watch tour operators, environmentalists, UWI students and Caribbean youth representatives. The Caribbean Whale Conservation Forum was held just prior to the start of the 58th International Whaling Commission (IWC) and took place in St Kitts/Nevis last week. Whale watching, IFAW said, is now a billion dollar industry that brings enjoyment to people across the globe as well as income to coastal communities. The environmental group says that with a current fleet capacity of over 2000 Caribbean whale watchers per day, whale watching is now a US$ ten-million-a-year business in the Caribbean. | | The IFAW says that with a current fleet capacity of over 2000 Caribbean whale watchers per day, whale watching is now a US$ ten-million-a-year business in the Caribbean. "Not only do tourists flock to the Caribbean to pay its whale watch tour guides, but whale watchers boost Caribbean tourism economies as a whole," said IFAW. IFAW argues whaling turns away tourists and puts a scar on the reputation of the Caribbean as a whale watching destination. One of the delegates, Hallam Diaze from St Vincent, said that the Caribbean's diverse, marine, mammalian species gives the region a significant aesthetic and economic value to extra-regional tourism markets. The director of IFAW's Wildlife and Habitat Protection Department, Dr Joth Singh, said one constraint faced by the Caribbean whale watching industry was not only the lack of political will to develop it but the need for certification, initial set up costs, the cost of liability insurance and a dependence on cruise ship alliances. He said a major objective of the Caribbean Whale Conservation Forum was to demonstrate to the world that their are legitimate Caribbean voices that oppose whaling. Asked about the view held by some Caribbean authorities that environmental groups like IFAW were ecological terrorist groups, he dismissed this allegation as being foolish propoganda. Dr Singh said he was willing to put money into developing a Caribbean styled anti-whaling and whale watching video to appeal to the region's youth. SOURCE - Trinidad & Tobago's Newsday |
