Tag Archives: Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission
Norwegian whaling – based on a balanced ecosystem
Minke whales have been hunted along the coast of Norway at least since medieval times. In the 1920s, the use of harpoon gun mounted on an ordinary fishing vessel replaced aboriginal methods. The whale meat is used for consumption, primarily on the domestic market. Minke whaling today is a small scale costal activity and is carried out by vessels of between 40 and 80 feet in length with a crew of four to eight people. The home harbours of most whaling vessels are small fishing communities, and whaling in combination with fishing has contributed significantly to the economic and social development or rural, coastal communities in Norway. Norwegian whaling is based on the principle of protection and sustainable harvesting of marine resources. Management of resources is founded on scientific advice, with the objective based on the concept of an ecosystem approach. Quotas are set on the basis of procedures developed by the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission (IWC). This committee has estimated that the stocks of minke whale that we harvest in the Northeast Atlantic and around Jan Mayen total 108 thousand animals For 2013, a quota is set of 1286 animals.. This is the same as the quota for 2010-2012. The stock of minke whales off Iceland and the Faeroe Islands, the central Atlantic stock, is estimated to number 71 thousand animals. Read the story here 10:02
