The International Fund for Animal Welfare's Seal campaign team members Sheryl Fink (Senior Researcher) & Katie McConnell (Communications Officer) discuss the recent release of the European Food and Safety Authority's report on seal hunting practice around the world and offer some analysis and observations.

Click here to listen to the podcast!

DATE:  April 17, 2007

SEALS KILLED:  181,706

Southern Gulf to be re-opened tomorrow for Magdalen Island sealers (who are currently at 90% of their quota). The killing continues...

IFAW Senior Researcher Sheryl Fink has been an observer of the hunt for the past 6 years

We're grounded today - April 6th - by low cloud, freezing rain, you name it. So I'm finally getting a chance to get caught up on work, email, and reading some of the news that has been printed over the past week.

A number of stories, including one in the Washington Post really burn my britches, because the media is continuing to promote a whole new whack of DFO myths about the seal hunt this year.

Myth 1. DFO has reduced the quota becuase of poor ice conditions this year.

Okay, this may be partly true. But the other part that isn't getting mentioned in the news this week is that DFO also had to reduce the quota because they know that recent quotas are unsustainable In order to stay within their 5 year management plan (which, if you ask, does not even exist. Call DFO and ask for a copy, if you are lucky you might get a press release and backgrounder but not a management plan) these quotas are going to need to drop even more next year, and they are going to need to drop a lot, and DFO (or at least someone there) knows it.

At first I wondered why Hearn included the 19,000 "carry forward" into the 270,000, rather than pulling last year's stunt of adding these "extra" allocations on top and making the quota sound even bigger, thus making more sealers and fishermen happier, which seems to be what drives this Minister's decisions (not that this is unusual).

But then I realized that maybe someone in DFO is brighter than we give them credit  for. Because if the quota stays at even 270,000 for the next couple of years, in order to keep within the (non-existent) plan it is going to have to be cut to something like 150,000, probably lower, and that is going to be a cut no Minister wants to make. But it has to be done, and by including the 19,000 the Minister (whoever that may be) can cover their butt somewhat and use it to justify the even bigger cut that will be necessary next year.

I won't even get into the absurdity of having a "carry forward" quota of 19,000, when in fact the total allowable catch last year was exceeded by almost 20,000 animals. That kind of silliness should be obvious to everyone, but I don't think it has been mentioned at all in the media coverage.

IFAW Senior Research and Projects Specialist Sheryl Fink discusses the current environment surrounding the 2007 Canadian Seal Hunt.  Watch this short video (1:44) and stay tuned!

Global warming is resulting in dramatically reduced ice coverage in the Gulf of St Lawrence and off Newfoundland.

Scientists have recorded poorer-than-average ice conditions off the East coast of Canada for the past 9 out of 11 years.  The result—even more deaths for harp seal pups.

In the face of this new threat, the commercial seal hunt must end.

Read more about the conditions of the ice cover between 1969-2006 (PDF).