leagal aspects of the whale watching.pdf - International Fund for ...

which was adopted by the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), requires that “where there
are threats of serious irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing
cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation.” This principle has been considered and applied in a
number of international and regional instruments, as well as in national legislation related both to fisheries and
prevention of marine environmental degradation. The interpretation and application of the precautionary principle
continues to be much discussed in the literature from the scientific, legal and economic perspectives and in the
context of a range of definitions. The difference between its application to conservation of living species and to
prevention of degradation of the marine environment has also been pointed out. For example, the Agreement for
the Implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 Relating to the Conservation and
Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks requires (Article 6) application of the
precautionary approach and lists certain criteria (Annex 2) to be taken into account.
Different views were expressed by participants concerning how the precautionary principle should be applied in the
context of whale watching; should it determine whether or not to regulate and, if so, the extent of the regulation,
or should it determine whether whale watching should be prohibited? A minority of the participants believed that
the application of the precautionary principle was questionable in this field since whale watching activities have not
yet been demonstrated to present any threat of serious or irreversible damage to whales. However, it was agreed
that should such a threat be identified, then the precautionary approach should be followed. Further, some agreed
that there is always a need to regulate whale watching activities in order to prevent harassment to whales.
Moreover, regulation of whale watching would promote its sound development and its acceptance as a non-lethal
alternative to hunting whales.
5.3 Land-Based Whale Watching
Watching whales from the land is a growing practice in areas where whales habitually come close to shore. For
example, land-based whale watching of southern right whales now takes place in South Africa. The established
areas where this takes place are closely monitored and guides are available for educational purposes. Watching
humpback whales from the cliffs off Rincon in Puerto Rico is also growing in popularity and local organisations are
working with the government officials to establish regulations and an educational programme.
While viewing whales from cliffs and other vantage points is not, in most cases, directly harmful to whales, this is
not the case in all land-based whale watching. Some whales such as the killer whales that frequently rub or rest on
pebble beaches in Robson Bight in British Columbia, Canada, typically come close to shore. Human presence on or
near these beaches has been shown to disturb the whales. Indirect land-based activities can also affect whales. In
Argentina, garbage left behind by the whale watchers has attracted large numbers of gulls, reportedly increasing
the incidence of gulls pecking at the skin of the whales offshore. Where these negative impacts occur, development
of appropriate guidelines, legislation and/or designation of protected area status should be considered. As with seabased
whale watching, these measures should be accompanied by monitoring and educational components.
6 FORM OF MEASURES
6.1 Review of existing measures and other precedents
Compilations of national regulations and guidelines have been produced by both the IWC (1996) and by Carlson
(1996). The working group received information on the specific examples of whale watching guidelines or
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