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Environmental ConservationShore Divers

Since Eco-Photo Explorers (EPE) was formed to help promote public interest in protecting the underwater environment through knowledge and awareness, this section will be used to provide information on special environmental conservation efforts that you should know about.

This web page contains links to other Internet sites and should not be considered endorsements of any products or services. No information in these sites have been endorsed or approved by Eco-Photo Explorers.

Environmental Telephone Hotlines
for the Vicinity of Suffolk County and Long Island, New York

In the News

Environmental - RSS Feeds from NewsIsFree.  This web site is designed to let you access thousands of news sources with a powerful and flexible portal for browsing, indexing and publishing news headlines.

Archive News: 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004
Ecology News and Headlines from news sources around the world.
Ocean Futures Society - ocean news
CNN: Nature and the Environment | Wildlife Topics


Dolphin slaughter brings charges from both sides
TAIJI, Japan (CNN) -- Mention a dolphin to someone in the United States and they'll think about a trip to Sea World or the 1960s-era TV program "Flipper."

Talk about a dolphin in rural Japan and some people think of dinner.

Fishermen hunt dolphins about every day in Taiji, a town of about 3,000 in southwestern Japan that juts into the Pacific Ocean.

Locals know they offend Western sensibilities by eating dolphins, but they say it's a tradition hundreds of years old. And they say outsiders have no more right to tell them to stop eating dolphins than they would have to demand that Westerners stop slaughtering, say, chickens or cows.

"I know there are many different ways of thinking in different societies, but for us who've been eating this for a long time ... it's an awkward thing to be criticized for," says Kayoko Tanaka, a retired middle school teacher. "I either fry dolphin meat or turn it into a stew."

That disgusts Ric O'Barry, a 68-year-old retired dolphin trainer from Miami who makes a second home in Taiji, where he goes to unusual lengths to fight against the tide of local tradition.

O'Barry sometimes dresses as a woman or wears a large surgical mask to disguise his Western identity on trips to spots overlooking the ocean. He prowls the cliffs with a video camera, hoping to catch fishermen in the act with footage that could stir emotions and raise awareness in the West.

"This here is ground zero for the largest slaughter of dolphins on planet Earth," says O'Barry, who trained five dolphins to play "Flipper" on the TV series of that name. "It's absolutely barbaric and it needs to stop."

He says the dolphins face a cruel fate.

"It takes a very long time to die. They bleed to death. And some of them are dragged in the boats with hooks while they're still alive," he says. "Many of them are gutted while they're still alive."

Looming beyond questions of whether the slaughter is humane, however, are larger and more complex questions of culture and perspective.

To some puzzled people in rural Japan, the question comes down to this: What's the difference between killing and eating a dolphin and killing and eating a fish? Or a chicken? Or a cow?

Most Japanese do not eat dolphins -- it's common in a few small fishing villages -- but the government respects the rights of people in towns like Taiji, says Joji Morishita, the international negotiator for Japan's Fisheries Agency.

Many Japanese consider the deer a sacred messenger from the gods, he says, but they would never suggest that people in other parts of the world stop venturing into the woods on a quest for venison, Morishita says.

"We don't like to play God to say this animal is just for food and this is not," he says. "Because we know nation to nation we have totally different ideas."

That's obvious in the growing clash between Australia and Japan over whale hunting.

Japanese ships crisscross the Antarctic Ocean each winter to capture and kill up to 1,000 whales. Whaling is allowed under international law when done for scientific reasons, which Japan cites as the legal basis for its hunts.

Legal justifications aside, however, the whale hunts offend many people in Australia, where new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has turned up the political pressure on Japan.

His government has dispatched a customs ship to monitor and videotape the whalers. And Rudd says Australia could even file charges against Japan in an international court to try to stop the whaling.

Back in Taiji, the fishermen are well aware of the Western sentiment that motivates whaling opponents. They realize the danger to their way of life that can come with prying cameras from other countries.

When CNN trained its cameras on fishermen gutting some freshly killed dolphins, the fishermen erected some tarps to obstruct the view.

Representatives of the Taiji Fishermen's Union declined CNN requests for an on-camera interview. So did the town's mayor and several others. And O'Barry says he's gotten into a few shouting matches with fishermen, who resent him and his camera.

So what does O'Barry say to their claim that he has no right to tell them to abandon a tradition that has flourished in their small corner of the world for more than 400 years?

"If someone came to my hometown and told me what to do, what to eat, I'd be outraged," he says. "But that's not going to stop me from doing it. I mean, tradition? It used to be traditional for women not to vote. So do we keep that going because it's traditional and cultural? Of course not."

Complicating the debate are findings suggesting that eating dolphins may not be good for one's health. The Japanese government said in 2005 that bottlenose dolphin meat contains 12 times more mercury than blue fin tuna -- high levels of mercury in fish can cause health problems in pregnant women and young children.

A city councilman in Taiji, Junichiro Yamashita, grew so concerned about mercury levels that he persuaded locals schools to stop serving dolphin meat at lunch. He even plucked some of his hair, sent it off for testing and discovered that it contained seven times as much mercury as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers safe.

The mercury findings have not swayed Masaru Matsushita, a Taiji fish dealer. He says that dolphin activists like O'Barry only see their needs without understanding the culture in his town.

"I understand that they think the dolphin in a cute animal, and I agree they're cute doing performances," he says, "but it is our culture to eat dolphins."

Source: CNN, Posted 8:22 p.m. EST, Mon February 11, 2008

Related Information

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Special Report!
Imaging Foundation Uses Video to Combat Cocos Island Shark Poaching!

An Imaging Foundation (IF) expedition uncovered and documented poaching activity at Cocos Island. The core team and Imaging Foundation volunteers pursued poaching vessels and then found grizzly proof of the poaching underwater, just several hundred feet from the island. Team members removed portions of long line and documented the entire trip.

Imaging Foundation materials were produced in Spanish as well as English and were presented to Costa Rican journalists at a press conference. Materials also found their way to the desk of the President of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias. Imaging Foundation returned to Cocos in December on an unexpected trip to see if the poaching had been curbed. The results were encouraging. The number of vessels had decreased, and the poaching was only found at night. Imaging Foundation teams are eager to return and continue their investigation.

View the Imaging Foundation Video that Brought Attention to Cocos Island Illegal Poaching!



Imaging Foundation is looking for a few committed individuals to return to Cocos and Malpelo for one of two trips they will be spearheading in April and May. Join them and help make a difference!

Cocos Island needs your help!
What if you could make a Difference?
See How You Can!

Protecting Cocos Island is the mission behind the Imaging Foundation's latest project. Unless Costa Rican citizens are aware of the value that the island holds, it is unlikely that more "shark safe" legislation will be passed, much less enforced in a consistent way. To help convince the citizens of San Jose, Costa Rica that this island is worth the fight, Imaging Foundation plans to bring the island to them by creating a permanent, high quality exhibit. New jobs and fishing alternatives will be created as part of this comprehensive project.

Imaging Foundation is making Giant Strides!
Please call or email them with any comments or suggestions.

The Imaging Foundation
23852 PCH, Unit 110
Malibu, CA 90265

Phone: 310.458.0210
Fax: 508.464.6514
Email: info@imagingfoundation.org

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International Coastal Cleanup

The Ocean ConservancyInternational Coastal Cleanup needs volunteers to help our oceans...

Clean oceans and waterways are vital to our health and safety. The International Coastal Cleanup is the world's largest one-day volunteer effort on behalf of the marine environment. Help us restore health to our oceans and waterways by volunteering in this year's International Coastal Cleanup. Events take place in more than 90 countries and in all 55 U.S. states and territories.

What: The International Coastal Cleanup; The world's largest one-day volunteer effort to remove marine debris.

When:
view website at www.coastalcleanup.org for current dates...

Where:
At a local beach or waterway near you.

Background:
The International Coastal Cleanup is the world's largest one-day volunteer effort on behalf of the marine environment. In 2003 more then 450,000 people from all 55 U.S. states and territories and over 90 countries around the world participated in the cleanup collecting over 7.55 million pounds of marine debris. Volunteers also found 237 entangled animals last year, emphasizing the dangers that marine debris plays in the coastal environment.

From community groups to families and concerned citizens, many of your readers are participating in a local cleanup. Help tell their story and the story of how marine debris is not only an eyesore, but also poses a serious risk to health and human safety and harms wildlife.

To find a Cleanup site near you call
1-800-262-BEACH or log onto www.coastalcleanup.org.

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Save the Dolphin Campaign

CNN Exposes Dolphin Slaughter Cruelty
Follow along as CNN goes with Ric O'Barry, of Save Japan Dolphins, to the annual dolphin slaughter in Taiji Japan. This video contains brutal fooatge of the suffering dolphins, brutally slaughtered for an outdated custom that must stop.

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Sea Turtle Conservation Program

Sea Turtles are seriously threatened, many are nearing extinction. Below are a few links to organizations that are making an effort to help save these amazing creatures. Find out how you can become a volunteer by contacting your location environmental group in your area. more...

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Save the Albatross Campaign

Save the Albatross

The problem - Most albatrosses and several other seabird species are heading for extinction. They are being unintentionally drowned in large numbers by "longline" fishing boats. Longlines are the single greatest threat to the world's seabirds. Much of it is carried out by "pirate" fishing boats.

Save the Albatross | Albatross Conservation

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World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSAP)

World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSAP)WSPA works to raise the standards of animal welfare throughout the globe and their vision is a world in which the welfare of animals is understood and respected by everyone, and protected by effective legislation.

Through their collaborative projects, WSPA is Campaigning Against Cruelty by exposing animal abuse and enforcing stronger laws; their Animal Rescue teams are working to save abandoned or neglected animals or those stricken by disasters; and by Changing Hearts and Minds amongst people living and working with animals, WSPA is forging a safer future for all animals.

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Choose Seafood Wisely

If you’re having trouble keeping track of which species of seafood and shellfish are safe to buy from an ecological perspective, then check out the latest Seafood MiniGuides from the websites listed below. Your seafood choices can really help protect the health of our oceans for future generations. Since many of your favorite kinds of seafood are disappearing from the world's oceans because of over-fishing, habitat destruction and the unintentional catch of other species, being educated about the right seafood to buy at the store or order in restaurants, will make sure our favorite seafood and shellfish will be around for years to come.

In addition to making a difference with your seafood choices, you can take part in local conservation projects as well like beach and river cleanups.

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Links

Atlantis Marine World
Blue Ocean Institute  - Seafood Miniguide (pdf)
Endangered Species Act of 1973, US Fish & Wildlife Service (pdf version)
Endangered Species Program, US Fish & Wildlife Service
List of Endangered & Threatened Wildlife Species of New York State
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
National Marine Sanctuary Program
Oceana - campaigns to protect and restore the world’s oceans
OceanNEnvironment
PaleMale: Red-tailed hawk who manages to thrive in New York City ( Links: 1 2 3 )
Peregrine Falcons: Webcam at 55 water street in New York City
SaveTheEnvironment.com
Sea Turtle Conservation Program
The Ocean Conservancy
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
World Wildlife Fund
Zoos and Aquariums of AZA

Any questions not addressed in the above pages or in this website, should be
forwarded by email to Technical Support.

- http://www.ecophotoexplorers.com/contacts.asp?subject=Technical Support#form

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Last Modified: March 02, 2008

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