Controversial seal hunt moves into final phase

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Controversial seal hunt moves into final phase
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A news photographer photographs a harp seal carcas among the ice floes
in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in March, as a sealing boat steams in the
background.
Photograph by : Canadian Press

Canadian Press
Published: Tuesday, April 11, 2006 Article tools

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. -- Canada's controversial East Coast seal hunt moves
to the ice floes off northeastern Newfoundland and Labrador on
Wednesday with sealers expected to slaughter 234,000 young animals.

Once again, animal-rights activists will be present to document the
final phase of the annual harp seal hunt, which the Canadian
government insists is humane and sustainable.

Hunters already have taken their quota of 91,000 seals in the Gulf of
St. Lawrence hunt, which ended last week.

"People were apprehensive about the ice in the gulf, but it was a very
good year and the quotas were caught very fast,'' said Roger Simon,
spokesman for the federal Fisheries Department.

Fisheries officials said between 200 and 300 boats are already
anchored off northeastern Newfoundland and Labrador, waiting for the
last instalment of the hunt to begin.

Hundreds of hunters will kill and skin as many animals as they can
Wednesday. There will be no hunting Thursday, when Fisheries officials
will count the pelts to see if the quota has been met.

The hunt will continue if the quota has not been reached.

Protesters with the International Fund for Animal Welfare say they
will be photographing the slaughter from a helicopter. They plan to
use the scenes of carnage to promote a trade ban on Canadian seal
products.

"If we can stop the markets for seal products, hopefully, we can
reduce the number of seals being killed,'' Sheryl Fink, spokeswoman
for the IFAW, said in an interview Tuesday.

Fink said international opposition to the annual Canadian hunt is growing.

"Between January and March of this year, we've had Greenland, Mexico
and Italy put in place either full bans or temporary suspensions on
the import of Canadian seal skins, and now Croatia has banned the
import of Canadian seal skins,'' she said.

The United States also has a long-standing ban on the import of marine
mammal products.

Canada's biggest market for seal pelts always has been, and remains, Norway.

The commercial seal hunt in Atlantic Canada in 2005 created more than
$16.5 million in direct sales of product.

The primary market is the sale of pelts from beater seals -- weaned
pups between three weeks and three months of age. Beater skins fetch
upwards of $50 each on fur markets.

Newfoundland sealer Mark Small said that contrary to what hunt
opponents are saying, the market for seal products is strong and
growing.

"It's a great success story,'' he said of the seal industry.

Canadian Fisheries officials estimate the size of the East Coast harp
seal population at close to six million