WHALES (CONT)

sources.
In 1992, the committee calculated that an annual catch of two thousand to four thousand Antarctic Minke whales for 100 years would not adversely affect the stock, the Japanese say.

Greenpeace has threatened what it calls "peaceful direct action" if the Nisshin Maru resumes whaling.

Captain Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society who confronted the Nisshin Maru earlier this month in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary says the ship is "limping" north and its whaling season is over.

"The Nisshin Maru is severely damaged," Watson said today. "The main engine was started but electrical systems are barely functioning. The whale processing equipment is ruined. The winches used to haul up the whales are inoperable. The cargo of whale meat onboard has been partially if not completely spoiled by loss of refrigeration and intense heat. In addition, the whale meat has been contaminated by chemicals used to fight the blaze and spilt during the fire."

"What Japan has just demonstrated over the last 10 days," said Watson, "is a total contempt for international concerns for the environmental protection of Antarctic wildlife. This whaling fleet is an ecological time-bomb. The potential for disaster is a real and ever present danger when they are down in the Whale Sanctuary illegally slaughtering endangered whales."

The Sea Shepherd ships Robert Hunter and Farley Mowat are now docked in Melbourne, Australia. Preparations have already begun to outfit a campaign to intervene against the possibility of a return of the whaling fleet in December.

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