Should Whale Watching be Legal?
Do whale-watching tours help whale
conservation?
It may seem odd when you
first hear about it, but there is a lot of controversy these
days about weather or not whale watching should be legal at
all. Whale-watching tours are popular with many people. Tours
take groups of people out into the ocean to see whales
close-up. A variety of boats are used, from small rubber life
boats to large boats carrying 200 people or more. People
taking,the tours are thrilled and awed by their experience.
However, some people complain that whale watchers harass the
whales. They think that the tours should be stopped or kept
from coming too near the whales.
Pros for whale-watching tours:
1. People who see whales up close come away
with a new respect and appreciation for whales. These people
will want to help save whales from extinction.
2. Whale-watching provides income for people
and communities. It shows those who used to depend on whaling
that whales are worth more alive than dead.
3. Many whales seem to enjoy contact with
whale watchers. They approach the boats and seem very curious.
They may even present their heads or flippers for people to
touch.
Cons against whale-watching tours:
1. You can appreciate whales from a
distance. When you get too close, you may disturb them or even
draw the attention of predators like killer whales to them.
2. The more thrilling the experience, the
more money the tour operator makes. Some operators may be
tempted to approach whales too closely and take risks in order
to increase their profits.
3. Whale watchers may affect whale behavior
and migrations in ways we do not yet understand.
As you can see,
there are great reasons both for and against whale watching
tours. For now it's completely legal in all countries, but if
the population keeps dwindleing, one day we may be forced to
stop these otherwise helpful excursions. Perhaps you'd better
charter your trip sooner rather than later, and bring a
videocam so that your grandchildren may know what it's
like.
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