Vancouver Aquarium announces 'new era' without whales, dolphins

Vancouver Aquarium accepts ban on cetaceans The Vancouver Aquarium is accepting the Park Board’s ban on whales and dolphins in captivity.

The long, bitter battle over cetacean captivity at the Vancouver Aquarium is ending in a forfeit.

Aquarium president John Nightingale said the fight over keeping whales and dolphins has become too big a distraction from their conservation efforts, and they are forging a new path forward without cetaceans.

"The ongoing controversy and the discussion in the community had gotten to the point where it's debilitating our ability to get on with our principle mission, which is engaging more people," Nightingale said.

"We are moving into a new era."

The aquarium's long-planned Arctic exhibit, designed to educate the public about the challenges climate change is posing in Canada's north, is still in the works, with construction scheduled to begin in September.

The exhibit's design no longer features any belugas, but will house several other species, from corals to walruses.

Nightingale said he hopes the aquarium's pivot will appease opponents and convince them to support its ongoing work.

"You can take the point of view they got what they wanted," he said.

"What's going on in the world's oceans is changing so rapidly, it needs every ounce of effort that all of us can give it. We could use the energy that those people spend bashing the aquarium to help with issues in nature. And I don't care what they want to do, what cause they pick – there's so much to be done."

A string of unfortunate deaths over recent years, including two belugas, a harbour porpoise and a false killer whale, has already left just one cetacean at the facility: Helen, a Pacific white-sided dolphin who was rescued from a fishing net in Japan 12 years ago.

Because she only has partial flippers, she can't be released into the wild. The aquarium's animal care team is currently assessing two options for Helen's future: let the senior live out her years at the aquarium, or send her to another facility where she can be with other dolphins.

"She's a very social animal. We know from years of experience and from all our colleagues that she should live with others of her kind," Nightingale said.

Despite the change in approach, Nightingale said the aquarium is still challenging the Vancouver Park Board's decision to ban any new whales, dolphins or porpoises from being brought into the facility.

A judicial review will determine whether the move violated the aquarium's contract, something Nightingale argued is an important issue to resolve moving forward.

The aquarium also wants the right to occasionally care for rescued whales and dolphins on a temporary basis until they can be transported elsewhere.

"We do want to retain the use of these facilities from time to time when necessary for rescue," Nightingale said.

The aquarium's Marine Mammal Rescue Centre, which is located outside Stanley Park and beyond the Park Board's jurisdiction, plans to continue rescuing injured cetaceans with the goal of rehabilitating them and releasing them back into the wild.

When the animals need long-term care, the aquarium said it will arrange a transfer to another facility – but that stopovers at its Stanley Park tanks might sometimes be required.

Hearings in the judicial review are already finished, and the aquarium is awaiting the judge's decision.