Head of the Federal Fisheries Agency didn’t take advice on orcas release

Release of the First Orcas and Belugas from “Whale Jail” raises growing concerns
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On 4th of July a press conference will be held on the theme: “The results of the first release of killer whales and beluga whales from Srednyaya Bay into the Sea of Okhotsk.”
03.10.2019

Head of the Federal Fisheries Agency didn’t take advice on orcas release

June 28, 2019

Moscow. INTERFAX.RU

The killer whales and beluga whales released on Thursday in the sea are in good condition, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture – Head of the Federal Agency for Fishery Ilya Shestakov. He clarified that the animals had already swam 140 km from the place of release.
Commenting on the claims of animal defenders, Shestakov noted that in this important matter the department had many advisers, but not those who were ready to take responsibility for operation.

“There are a lot of advisers in this matter. Whoever is asked, everyone knows how to release the animals, how to monitor after. But no one wants to take responsibility. Unfortunately, neither the Cousteau team, Greenpeace, nor Sakhalin environmental watch. Everyone wants to advise,” – said the head of the Fishery.
According to him, “many of the tips were not based on anything.”

“Someone says that it was necessary to transport killer whales and belugas by sea. But he doesn’t know that you can’t transport these animals by sea, because in the event of a storm they may die. You must very carefully divide the specialists who do this and those that only advise, “- said Shestakov.

According to him, the specialists of the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanology (VNIRO) and capture companies deal with these issues professionally.

Concerning the fact that before release into the sea, mammals did not have a period of readaptation, Shestakov said that specialists on the site had made a decision based on the current situation. “If experts see that animals are ready to go directly to the sea, then why torture and keep them?” – he said.

The Head of Fisheries announced that more detailed information on the release of mammals will be provided at the VNIRO press conference next week.

Free Russian Whales: It is very strange to hear from the head of Fisheries that none of the “advisers” was ready to take responsibility when, in reality, they simply did not allow anyone.

We are waiting for VNIRO press conference next week and we hope that information about the release and location of animals will be available to all people, as requested by the public! The transparency of the process could make life easier for VNIRO and all of us.