Iceland is set to take a significant step in marine conservation by advancing legislation that would permanently prohibit commercial whaling. This legislative proposal, anticipated to be presented to parliament in February, follows extensive discussions and resistance from animal welfare and conservation advocates. Should it pass, Iceland would cease its commercial whaling operations, leaving Japan and Norway as the only countries to continue the practice.
The focus of Iceland’s whaling industry has predominantly been on fin whales, a species classified as vulnerable. Despite a government-sanctioned quota, which has allowed the capture of dozens of fin whales during the hunting season from June to September, the move towards a permanent ban has been met with support from animal rights organizations. These groups have consistently raised ethical, environmental, and conservation concerns regarding the continuation of commercial whaling.
Iceland’s decision to consider this ban marks a reversal from its resumption of commercial whaling in 2006. This was despite an international moratorium established in 1986 aimed at protecting whale populations. In contrast, Norway resumed its commercial whaling activities in 1993, and Japan exited the International Whaling Commission in 2019, subsequently continuing whaling within its territorial waters and exclusive economic zone.
Should Iceland’s proposed ban be enacted, Japan and Norway would stand alone as the remaining nations engaged in commercial whaling. The international moratorium, however, does provide exceptions for indigenous communities in specific regions such as parts of Greenland and Alaska, allowing them to hunt whales for nutritional, cultural, and traditional purposes.
