Canadian animal group blasts proposed seal cull
Date: 21-May-01
Country: CANADA
Author: Rajiv Sekhri
"This is an obscene position for a modern government to take," said Dr. Rick Smith, national director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).
Gerry Reid, Newfoundland's fisheries minister, told Reuters that a study by independent scientists had found the number of seals was too high in area waters.
"The report says we have too many seals. We are saying that if the federal government agrees with this, then obviously we should remove some seals," Reid said.
He said scientists recommended culling about four million seals, reducing their number to between 1.5 million and two million from the current five million to six million.
"I have some better suggestions for culls," Smith said. "Let's cull the stupidity out of this debate. Let's cull the bad science. And let's cull the political grandstanding."
Reid said the high number of seals affects the cod population, already reduced to dangerously low levels through overfishing on the rich Grand Banks area off Newfoundland. Canada has all but eliminated the cod fishery in a bid to rebuild stocks of the once-plentiful fish.
However, the IFAW said the provincial government fails to acknowledge basic marine science.
"While seals eat cod, they also eat other predators of cod, like squid. Reducing the seal population may simply increase the populations of other cod predators, but won't necessarily help the cod's recovery," Smith said.
Reid said there are environmental hazards associated with culling so many seals, but added they would only result if the federal government approved the recommendation.
"If you are saying we should go out and take four million seals out the water in one year, that is not an option," Reid said.
He said another way to reduce the seal population lies in increasing the allowable catch, now at 275,000 a year, in the annual seal hunt. The fatty acids in seals are used to make pharmaceuticals, their skins are used for clothing and the meat is a traditional Newfoundland food.
"We would like to fully utilize any seals we would cull," Reid said.
He said the seal population in the northwest Atlantic has expanded in the 1990s to levels not seen in history, further reducing the supply of cod.
Smith said: "This latest suggestion won't just tarnish the image of Newfoundland around the world, it will bury it six feet under. These sorts of reckless statements will set the Newfoundland tourism industry back by 30 years."
