Holy men who met their unholy ends
Of all the creatures that call Earth home, it's impossible not to admire the whale. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, each seemingly more beautiful than the next, and their majesty has kept mankind captivated since time immemorial.
But whales actually have a lot more to offer than just their beauty. They are in fact great allies in the fight against global warming. Check out this gallery to learn how whales help combat climate change.
In 1986, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) banned commercial whaling due to concerns over rapidly depleting stocks.
The practice of hunting whales for their meat and blubber, which has been popular for centuries the world over, was theoretically put to a stop.
However, there are still countries that engage in whaling despite the ban. Norway, for example, “objects” to the ban, while Japan withdrew from the Commission in 2018.
According to Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), Japan, Norway, and Iceland have killed nearly 40,000 whales since 1986.
The meat and body parts of hunted whales are sold and used to make items ranging from pharmaceuticals and health products to human and pet food.
Whaling has been unpopular for a long time; many people simply find it disturbing to witness the slaughter of such a majestic animal, particularly one that is already endangered.
And yet there is an equally, if not more, disturbing consequence of whaling that scientists have only recently begun to take notice of.
As a matter of fact, whales are very handy when it comes to keeping carbon out of the atmosphere, and therefore hunting them is really quite harmful for the environment.
If we want to understand why killing whales for their meat and parts is so environmentally-unfriendly, we must first consider their size.
Whales are among the largest creatures on Earth, and are essentially giant stores of carbon. When they die of natural causes, that carbon sinks to the bottom of the ocean, where it stays for centuries.
When, instead, a whale is hunted, and its carcass is not allowed to sink to the ocean floor, all that carbon is released into the atmosphere.
One scientist at the University of Maine estimated that over the 20th century whaling released roughly 70 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
This may not seem like a lot (15 million cars can do this in one year), but it is not only by dying and sinking to the bottom of the ocean that whales do their part for the planet.
They even contribute to the fight against global warming by pooping! Whale excrement is rich in iron and therefore offers phytoplankton the perfect environment in which to grow.
Phytoplankton in turn are great at capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In fact, it is estimated that phytoplankton capture 40% of all carbon dioxide produced.
With fewer whales, then, there are fewer phytoplankton, and the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon is greatly reduced.
According to one policy manager at WDC, “We need to think of whaling as being a tragedy that has removed a huge organic carbon pump from the ocean.”
Research suggests that whaling has also impacted the environment in other, more indirect ways. For example, with fewer other whales in the ocean to feed on, orcas have begun to prey on sea otters.
With populations of sea otters declining, sea urchins have been allowed to thrive, and sea urchins love to feast on kelp forests, which have long since been recognized as great CO2 absorbers.
All this, then, has led to concerted efforts in recent years to restore whale populations. The idea is becoming increasingly popular with respect to other climate change initiatives.
Other ideas include tree planting and stimulating phytoplankton growth by adding iron to the ocean. The problem with tree planting, however, is that it requires landmass that we simply don’t have.
And while artificially stimulating phytoplankton growth might sound like a good idea, in fact studies suggest it is much less efficient than rebuilding whale populations.
Restoring whale populations has the added benefit that it doesn’t only help combat climate change, but it also helps the planet’s ecosystem in other ways.
For example, whale carcasses provide a great habitat for many deep sea species. Research suggests that a skeleton in its final stage of decay can house and feed up to 200 species.
There already exist several carbon offsetting mechanisms that allow parties responsible for high levels of carbon emissions to invest in whale repopulation.
The idea is that they pay towards the cause of protecting whale populations rather than reducing their own carbon emissions, and thereby end up in a carbon neutral position.
One of the co-authors of a 2019 paper by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has appealed to potential participants in carbon offsetting schemes. He said: “What you’re doing is valuing the service from the whales, because they’re sequestering carbon dioxide.”
The conclusion of the 2019 IMF paper is that whale protection must now be prioritized as a way to tackle the ongoing problem of climate change.
It remains to be seen whether the topic will be put on the agenda of the UN Climate Change Conference, which will take place in Azerbaijan later in 2024.
Sources: (BBC) (WDC)
See also: Floating gardens: Bangladesh's answer to climate change
How whales help to combat climate change
They serve as excellent allies in the fight against climate change!
LIFESTYLE Environment
Of all the creatures that call Earth home, it's impossible not to admire the whale. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, each seemingly more beautiful than the next, and their majesty has kept mankind captivated since time immemorial.
But whales actually have a lot more to offer than just their beauty. They are in fact great allies in the fight against global warming. Check out this gallery to learn how whales help combat climate change.