Japan began commercial whaling Monday following a 30-year ban, after the country announced it would pull out of the International Whaling Commission late last year.
For years, Japan exploited a loophole in international rules to continue hunting whales despite being a member of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) bound by the commercial whaling moratorium that went into effect in 1986.
After a controversial withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission last year, Japan is unfortunately poised to resume commercial whaling after a gap of over 30 years. Come July 1, and a fleet of five vessels will set off from Abashiro port in Kushiro, Hokkaido after a formal ceremony.
Palau's fisheries minister says the country is still figuring out the balance of fishing in its waters. Click on the link below to read the full article.
Japanese whaling vessels launched on Saturday the last round of what Japan calls scientific research off the Pacific coast ahead of the country's pullout from the International Whaling Commission next month for commercial hunting. Click on the link below to read the full article.
Environmentalists want to stop Japan‘s plans to discharge what they say is more than a million tonnes of highly contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean. Click on the link below to read the full article.
Despite a fishing ban from December 2020, Palau will allow Japanese fishermen to continue catching skipjack tuna in the Pacific nation's waters. Click on the link below to read the full article.
Japan's fishing quota for Pacific bluefin tuna, popular fish for sushi and sashimi, will remain at the current level next year. Click on the link below to read the full article.
New Zealand and Japan will cooperate to ensure the success of the Pacific Climate Change Centre in Samoa, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. Click on the link below to read the full article.
Mary Bainimarama, the wife of Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe, has used the Fukushima tsunami of 2011 to call for global action and policy on ocean conservation.Click on the link below to read the full article.
