South Pacific - Gift to the Earthfor whale conservation

Gift: 8913 August 2003

Blue whale. © WWF-Canon / Pieter LAGENDYK

Director General’s Message

Gifts to the Earth celebratesignificant conservation

achievements, which help tobuild a world in which people

live in harmony with nature, soensuring we leave our children

a living planet.

Contents

Take action for a living planet .................................................... 1

What is a Gift to the Earth? ....................................................... 1

The status of whales in the South Pacific.................................. 1

South Pacific - Gift to the Earth for whale conservation ......... 1-3

How do whale sanctuaries help marine conservation? ............. 4

Map of whale sanctuaries in the Pacific .................................... 5

When WWF launched the Gifts to the Earth scheme in 1996, we little realised the great extentof goodwill and readiness within the international community to take up the challenge andmake conservation commitments of global importance. Nor did we anticipate the magnitude ofthe conservation achievement this simple idea would help inspire.

The aim was to encourage governments, companies, organisations and individuals to makesignificant conservation commitments reflecting WWF’s global priorities, and to celebrate thesepublicly, highlighting the achievements and the leadership. This was to help mobilise a movetowards a world where the environment is treated with respect and responsibility, and ensurewe leave our children a living planet.

Among the 88 Gifts celebrated to date are major conservation commitments by more than 60governments and partnerships with environmentally responsible corporations to promote suitablemanagement of forest and fisheries. Gifts have recognised the formal protection of more than100 million hectares of forest - approximately three percent of the world’s remaining forest - thecreation of marine parks, restoration and protection of wetlands, and the launch of energyconservation schemes to help combat climate change. Taken together, these undertakingsrepresent new and unprecedented levels of conservation achievement which are, truly, Gifts tothe Earth.

I warmly welcome this, the 89th Gift to the Earth, which recognises the initiative to establishnational whale sanctuaries in the South Pacific, and the commitments made by 11 countries inthe region to achieve a network of whale sanctuaries covering almost 30 million sq km.

Dr Claude Martin

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Minke whale. © WWF-Canon / Jürgen FREUND

Take action for a living planet

In the four decades since its foundation, WWF has grown frommodest beginnings into a truly global conservation organisationthat has been instrumental in making the environment a matter ofworld concern. In addition to funding and managing numerousconservation projects throughout the world, WWF lobbiesgovernments and policy-makers, conducts research, influenceseducation systems, works with local communities and withbusiness and industry to address global threats to the planet byseeking long-term solutions for the benefit of people and nature.

What is a Gift to the Earth?

A Gift to the Earth is a public celebration by WWF of a conservationaction by a government, a company or an individual that is both ademonstration of environmental leadership and a globallysignificant contribution to the protection of the natural world.

The Gift is a form of recognition, which enables WWF publicly tothank and congratulate the government, the company or theindividual for an important conservation achievement, which canalso serve as an example to others.

WWF has, to date, recognised 88 Gifts to the Earth since theinception of the scheme in 1996. Each Gift represents an importantsuccess within one or more of WWF’s six global conservationpriorities: the protection of forest, freshwater and marineecosystems, the conservation of endangered species, theprevention of climate change, and the elimination of toxic chemicals.WWF focuses on these priorities within the Global 200 Ecoregions-a science-based ranking of the world’s most biologically andglobally representative areas of biodiversity.†

The status of whales in the

South Pacific

The South Pacific Ocean is the world’s largest marine habitat. It isto this important oceanic region of the world that 11 of the world’sgreat whale species travel to breed. The South Pacific is also animportant migratory route to the rich feeding grounds of theSouthern Ocean - also designated as a Whale Sanctuary by theInternational Whaling Commission (IWC).

The sudden appearance of a great whale at the ocean surface isa majestic sight that has spurred people’s imagination andspirituality for thousands of years. Whales migrate huge distancesbetween their feeding and breeding grounds. Despite their vastroaming areas, whales are threatened by a range of humanactivities.

Today, populations of nearly all the great whales are at depressedlevels, a legacy of unsustainable whaling during the past twocenturies. Whales are long-lived mammals with slow reproductivecycles, and scientists believe it may take up to several decades -or more - for depleted whale populations to recover from theirhistorically low levels.

Most populations of great whales in the Southern Hemispherecollapsed as an estimated 1.5 million whales were killed duringthe last century. Many of these depleted populations have still not

recovered. Today, despite the IWC’s moratorium on whaling, sevenof the 13 great whales are still considered endangered orvulnerable. Furthermore, the moratorium is not totally effective -more than 23,500 whales of five different species have been killedsince the moratorium was introduced in 1986, and the rate isincreasing.

Over the past few decades,whales have also beensubject to other, ever-increasing threats, drivingseveral species towardsextinction. It is estimated thatover 300,000 whales,dolphins and porpoises arekilled each year as a resultof by-catch in fisheries andentanglement in driftingfishing gear. Further, climatechange, the build-up oftoxins in the environment, increased habitat degradation,underwater noise pollution and collisions with ships all continue tothreaten the world’s whales, porpoises and dolphins.

Blue, humpback, sperm, southern right, fin, sei, Antarctic minke,dwarf minke, Bryde’s, pygmy Bryde’s, and pygmy right whales areall known to be present in the South Pacific region. Almost all ofthese species have been commercially hunted leading to asignificant decline in numbers. This initiative to create a networkof whale sanctuaries in the South Pacific constitutes a majorcontribution to the effort to save these great whales, and the widerange of other marine life that co-exists with them.

South Pacific - Gift to the

Earth for whale conservation

The Pacific Islands Leaders Forum - which comprises the Headsof Government of all independent states of the region - firstdiscussed the IWC proposal for a South Pacific Whale Sanctuaryin 1998. Although the proposed South Pacific Whale Sanctuaryhas not been established by the IWC, the Pacific Island Leadersgave their full support and the Forum has maintained its stanceever since.

This became the impetus for the South Pacific RegionalEnvironment Programme (SPREP) to develop its Regional MarineMammal Conservation Programme, from which the vision ofdeveloping a network of nationally declared whale sanctuaries inthe South Pacific has grown.

The vision of this network of sanctuaries is one of unprecedentedregional co-operation from the governments of Australia, CookIslands, Fiji, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue,Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu. Through anational process of designating the Exclusive Economic Zones(EEZs*) of each individual country as a whale sanctuary, a groupof committed South Pacific nations has spearheaded the creationof a multinational sanctuary which will provide far-reaching benefitsfor whales, porpoises and dolphins and marine conservationgenerally.

† See: http://www.panda.org/resources/programmes/global200/pages/home.html

Southern right whale, mother and calf.© WWF-Canon / Michel GUNTHER

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* An EEZ refers to the Exclusive Economic Zone, generally defined as an area of marine environment around a country’s coastline which is within that country’sjurisdiction, generally 200 nautical miles from shore.

Fin whale. © WWF-Canon / Gustavo YBARRA

Gifts to the Earth2

Hector’s dolphin. © WWF / Stephen DAWSON

It also demonstrates thepower of regional co-operation for the benefit ofsustainable developmentand marine management.WWF’s South Pacific officebased in Fiji has beenhelping to secure thiscommitment, supported

also by WWF Australia and WWF New Zealand, and WWF’sInternational Species Programme.

The total EEZ for all Pacific Islands and Territories is around45,000,000 sq km. The total EEZ of the 11 Pacific Islands andterritories who have at the time of this event declared or havelegislation in place that protects whales is 28,520,000 sq km.

The following is a brief description of each of those countries thatare contributing to the conservation of marine mammals in theSouth Pacific Ocean through their EEZ-whale sanctuary initiative.WWF applauds their commitment to conservation and sustainabledevelopment and recognises this initiative as a Gift to the Earth.

Australia

Australia has the biggest EEZ in the Pacific at 8.6 million sq km,and has protected whales in its waters since the signing of theWhale Protection Act in 1980. The Australian EnvironmentProtection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 establishedthe Australian whale sanctuary and provides a high level ofprotection to all marine mammals.

Australia has demonstrated critical international leadership incetacean conservation through strong conservation advocacy insupport of sanctuaries and other conservation measures. TheAustralian government strongly supported the concept of aSouthern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, and was a co-sponsor of theresolution at the IWC in 1994 that led to its establishment.

Critical migratory corridors for humpback whales extend fromfeeding grounds in Antarctic waters and along the Australian EastCoast. The territory also includes significant breeding areas of thesouthern right whale. The dwarf minke whale can be seen onAustralia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Cook Islands

The Cook Islands declared its 1.8 million sq km EEZ a whalesanctuary in September 2001. When announcing the declarationthe then Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Robert Woonton, noted thatthe declaration was in line with the 1989 Marine Resource Act,that does not allow fishing for marine mammals. “The new whalesanctuary is within the spirit of that Act,” he said.

Dr Woonton said the declaration of the sanctuary was a reflectionof the high esteem in which Polynesian peoples hold whales. “Wehave lived peacefully alongside whales for many centuries,” hesaid. “But the devastation wrought by the commercial whaling fleetsof the last century has left us with only a few animals now returningto their traditional South Pacific breeding grounds each winter.”

“If the nations of the South Pacific wish to protect the breedinggrounds which are so critical to the recovery of our depleted whalepopulations, then clearly we shall have to take matters into ourown hands,” he asserted.

Fiji

In March 2003, the Fiji government approved the declaration ofFiji’s 1.26 million sq km EEZ as a whale sanctuary.

The Fiji government noted that the South Pacific Forum leaders in2002 were invited to declare their respective waters as whalesanctuaries, given the many developments in multilateral, regionaland domestic whale protection.

The Minister for Commerce, the Honourable Tomasi Vuetilovoni, spokeon behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. He said that Fiji’s declarationof a whale sanctuary signalled to the rest of the world their government’swillingness to honour its international obligations such as theConvention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Law of theSea Convention (UNCLOS).

“A Fiji whale sanctuary will help catalyse research and raise publicunderstanding and ability to manage Fiji’s marine biodiversity,” headded.

French Polynesia

In May 2002, the French Government created a cetaceansanctuary within the 5.3 million sq km EEZ of French Polynesiaand later passed national legislation to legally bind thedeclaration.

Whale watching operations take place around the many islandsof French Polynesia as more and more humpbacks take advantageof the safety of the sanctuary to mate and breed.

New Caledonia

The first Europeans to spend time on New Caledonia were Britishand American whalers, who set up an oil extraction station onLifou in the Loyalty Islands in 1840. Now in the 21st Century, thegovernment of New Caledonia has made a positive contributionto whale conservation through its recent declaration of its 1.74million sq km EEZ as a whale sanctuary.

New Zealand

New Zealand has beenprotecting whaleswithin its 4.83 million sqkm EEZ since 1978under the MarineMammal ProtectionAct. The Act providescomplete protection toall marine mammals inthe New Zealand EEZ.The protection of greatwhales that migratethrough New Zealandwaters is recognised aspart of New Zealand’s responsibility to other nations and culturesin the region, and to future generations.

New Zealand has demonstrated critical international leadershipin cetacean conservation through strong conservation advocacyin support of sanctuaries and other conservation measures.

The New Zealand government strongly supported the concept ofa Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, and was a co-sponsor of theresolution at the IWC in 1994 that led to its establishment.

Whale watching has proved to be a major income earner for thepeople of Kaikoura on the East Coast of New Zealand. Fromnothing over a decade ago, Whale Watch Kaikoura has become amulti-million dollar eco-tourism business that has revived the ailingeconomy of this town. “The formula for success is a business basedon a powerful mix of indigenous people, culture, heritage andenvironment,” says Whale Watch Kaikoura Chairman, Wally Stone.

Niue

The population of Niue is around 2,000 and its land area is 259 sqkm. Its EEZ is 390,000 sq km and in 2001 the government of Niuedeclared it a whale sanctuary. In May 2002, the Niuean Cabinetpassed the Niuean Whale Sanctuary Regulations, which declares

all Niuean waters awhale sanctuary andprohibits the killing ortaking of whales andporpoises in watersunder its jurisdiction. Theregulations are madepursuant to Niue’sTerritorial Sea andExclusive EconomicZone Act 1997.Cetaceans are also

protected by law under the Domestic Fishing Regulations 1996made pursuant to the Domestic Fishing Act 1995.

Whale watching is also an important source of income for Niue,especially with the presence of the humpback whales. Whalewatching of humpbacks occurs in the winter months of July -November every year.

Papua New Guinea

In May 2002, the Papua New Guinea government declared itsEEZ a whale sanctuary and this was gazetted in June 2002. PapuaNew Guinea’s (PNG) 3.1 million sq km EEZ is home to a diversenumber of marine mammals that require careful management.

The Ocean Alliance, formerly The Whale Conservation Institute,conducts rigorous scientific investigation in the interest of thewelfare of whales and the ocean environment. Its research vesselthe Odyssey visited PNG waters in 2001 and stayed for six months.It recorded sightings of: baleen whales, beaked whales, spermwhales, pygmy whales and dwarf whales, porpoises and riverine,coastal and oceanic dolphins.

In 2002, the former Prime Minister, Sir Mekere Morauta, referredto that research in the government’s decision to declare PNG’sEEZ a whale sanctuary. “Recent research shows that Papua NewGuinea’s waters cover migratory routes and possibly containimportant breeding grounds for certain whale species. Whales arepart of the ocean food chain, and if one link in the chain is removed,other sections are put at risk.”

Samoa

In May 2002, the Samoan Minister for Lands Survey andEnvironment announced the decision to establish a sanctuary forwhales, dolphins, sharks and turtles in its 120,000 sq km EEZ.

Samoa is an important port of call in the grand migration ofhumpback whales up and down the South Pacific. Biologists havelong recognized these whales as a distinct group which migratesnorthward from Antarctica with some going towards Australia andothers branching off towards Tonga. It is believed that most of thislatter group remains near Tonga, but at least some migrate onwardto Samoa. Creation of the whale sanctuary is expected to spurresearch on the movements of these humpback whales.

Tonga

In 1979 the King of Tonga issued a royal decree banning whalingin Tongan waters. This was backed up by the 1989 Tongan FisheriesAct that prohibits the killing of whales and other marine mammalsin Tongan Waters.

Tonga’s EEZ is 700,000 sqkm and provides asanctuary for the humpbackwhale. Humpback whalesmigrate to Tonga from theAntarctica to breed andmate, and this has attractedwhale-watching operations.The International Fund forAnimal Welfare (IFAW),SPREP and the Australianbased NGO Whales Alivebanded together to build thefoundations for whale watching in Tonga including: governmentworkshops, development of guidelines, operator training, publiceducation and the IFAW Marine Awareness Centre run andcoordinated by Filipe Tonga.

Filipe Tonga runs a whale watching operation in Vava’u which isnow a thriving industry generating around US 1 million dollarsannually for the Tongan economy.

Vanuatu

The 1982 Vanuatu Fisheries Act prohibits the killing of marinemammals in Vanuatu waters. This is soon to be replaced by theFisheries Bill 2003 that includes protection measures for marinemammals and declares Vanuatu’s 680,000 sq km EEZ a whalesanctuary.

This includes protection of the dugong or sea cow. With a dwindlingworld population, protection efforts are vital wherever the dugongis found to help the species recover.

Sperm whale. © WWF-Canon / Pieter LAGENDYK

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Humpback whale.© WWF-Canon /Catherine HOLLOWAY

How do whale sanctuaries

help marine conservation?

Helping endangered marine species to

recover

Whales are important around the world for a range of cultural,economic and ecological reasons. As large migratory species, theytravel vast distances and require both coastal and pelagicenvironments to survive. This makes whales extraordinarilyimportant ambassadors for marine conservation. By conservingthe habitats of great whales and working to increase numbers ofwhales, we also help to conserve the habitats of many otheranimals which coexist with whales, and maintain healthy, wellfunctioning marine ecosystems.

Sanctuaries are a valuable tool to help vulnerable whalepopulations recover by ensuring key areas are safe from harm,and out of bounds for any form of whaling. It is well establishedthat threatened migratory species need protection in breedinggrounds and along important migratory routes, as well as onfeeding grounds. The great whales are highly migratory. The currentboundaries of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary around theAntarctic do not include their mating or calving grounds or migratorypathways to the north. This is why the establishment of EEZs aswhale sanctuaries in the Pacific, to the north of the Southern OceanWhale Sanctuary, is crucial. It is the combination of thesesanctuaries which will provide the best benefit for whaleconservation by protecting a large area of the whales’ migratoryhabitat. Whales will stand a much better chance of survival and,eventually, of recovering back to pre-whaling population numbers.

Whale watching & eco-tourism: an

investment in the future

Whale watching is now an economically viable and fast growingbranch of the tourism industry. Internationally, more than ninemillion tourists took part in whale watching in 2000 and the totalrevenue amounted to USD 1 billion. Carefully monitored, whalewatching can have massive economic benefits for the small islandstates in the South Pacific, as is already happening in Tonga. Here,the whale watching industry has contributed to a positive overallimage for the whole country as a tourist destination, and indeed

10 percent of all touristsvisiting the islands are whalewatchers. Whale watchingcan be a unique opportunityto build and ensuresustainable livelihoods forlocal communities while alsoprotecting and valuingmarine biodiversity.

Research

The declaration of the 50 million square km Southern Ocean WhaleSanctuary by the IWC in 1994 facilitated a substantial increase inmarine mammal research in that area. Similarly, it is hoped interestin co-operative research will be boosted in the South Pacific,providing opportunities to develop integrated research efforts toacquire further information about the biological and ecological roleof cetaceans in their various environments. The Sanctuary alsoprovides a focus for regional cooperation in other marine research,in a large habitat undisturbed by whaling activities.

Cooperative management of the marine

environment

Overall, creation of these whale sanctuaries also focuses attentionon the wider marine environment at a critical time. As recognisedin the collapse or depletion of fisheries worldwide, the seas are incrisis and urgent conservation action isrequired. Creation of marine protectedareas and other conservationmechanisms such as whale sanctuariesgreatly contributes to restoring the healthof the marine environment.

In addition, the creation of a network ofEEZ whale sanctuaries in the SouthPacific provides a framework forinternational cooperation in the SouthPacific Region, a platform for ongoingmanagement of shared marineresources across the region, andacknowledges the cultural importance ofwhales to many cultures across theSouth Pacific. This is essential for theglobal, long-term conservation andmanagement of marine biodiversity andthe sustainable development of theworld’s largest marine habitat.

Conclusion

The long-term vision of WWF is for all whale populations to haverecovered and to be thriving throughout the oceans.

The praiseworthy effort by the 11 South Pacific countries andterritories to form a network of EEZ whale sanctuaries will serveas a winning example for other island states in the region, andcreates a blueprint for whale conservation and co-operation formarine management in both the South Pacific and elsewhere inthe world.

WWF hopes these valuable first designations will set a precedentthat will soon be followed by other states. Combined with welldefined, scientifically-based management plans, and mechanismsfor implementation, the whale sanctuaries can provide aninvaluable tool for biodiversity conservation throughout the region,as well as providing opportunities for sustainable development.Humpback whale and whale watching boat.

© WWF-Canon / Jürgen FREUND

Gifts to the Earth4

Sperm whale. © WWF-Canon / Stephen DAWSON

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Contacts

Let’s leave Our Children A Living Planet

WWF South Pacific works closely with the South Pacific states andterritories and congratulates the efforts of those that are leading whaleconservation in the region.

“The individual actions of the South Pacific countries collectively add upto a significant conservation commitment that WWF has recognised as aGift to the Earth.”

Dermot O’Gorman, Director, WWF South Pacific Programme.

WWF South Pacific Programme

Tel: +679 331 5533

Fax: +679 331 5410

Email: general@wwfpacific.org.fj

www.wwfpacific.org.fj/whales

WWF New Zealand works closely with WWF South Pacific through theInternational Programme. WWF New Zealand’s priority is marineconservation.

“The Gift to the Earth event is a wonderful celebration of the SouthPacific’s commitment to whale conservation. The achievementsrecognised demonstrate the global impact of collective national actions increating whale sanctuaries.”

Jo Breese, Chief Executive, WWF-New Zealand.

WWF New Zealand

Tel: +64 (0) 4 499 2930

Fax: +64 (0) 4 499 2954

Email: info@wwf.org.nz

www.wwf.org.nz

WWF International Species Programme

Tel: + 41 (0) 2236 49 111

Fax: + 44 (0) 7669 749 311

Email: info@wwf-species.org

www.panda.org/species

“This is tremendous news for whales and represents an unprecedentedlevel of co-operation towards the stewardship of marine mammals andother marine resources at an international level.”

Dr Susan Lieberman, Director, WWF International Species Programme

“WWF applauds the governments of the Pacific and remains committedto a partnership that aims to guarantee the future of these specialcreatures, the traditions and values they embody, and the region’s marineresources.”

Chief Emeka Anyaoku, WWF International President.

WWF is one of the world’s largest and most experienced independent conservation organisations with almost five million supportersand a global network active in more than 90 countries. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the planet’s natural environmentand to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by: · conserving the world’s biological diversity · ensuring that theuse of renewable natural resources is sustainable · promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.

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