Preparing for battle.

While the Japanese Whaling Fleet have confirmed their intention to return to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, to slaughter entire families of migrating Whales, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society are preparing to stop them at all costs.

Image (c) Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

With our 4 ships, Sea Shepherd will once again follow the Japanese whaling fleet down to the Southern Ocean, and we are hell bent on stopping the Whalers from taking the lives of any Whales.

For the past 8 years, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have actively opposed the Japanese Whaling fleet down in the Southern Ocean.  Every year making it more and more difficult for the Whaling Fleet to be successful in their attempt to slaughter over 1,000 whales.

There has been an international ban on commercial whaling since 1986, but the Japanese continue to abuse a provision in the ban that allows them to hunt whales under “scientific research”. The Whaling fleet is operated by a Japanese establishment The ICR (Institute of Cetacean Research) which was  set up in 1987 – a year after the international whaling ban was put in place.

They claim to research migration patterns, population numbers, the role of Whales in the Antarctic eco-system and how environment changes effect Whales.  Non of these reasons justify actually taking the lives of hundreds of Whales every year, especially in a Whale Sanctuary.

Believing and acting strongly on aggressive non-violent tactics, Sea Shepherd will intervene in any way they can to accomplish their own goal: making certain no whales get killed in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

As we near campaign which will start in december, as the southern ocean warms and Whales start to migrate south for the Antarctic summer, Sea Shepherd crews prepare their ships for battle.

The bottom line is, we have to be prepared for anything. As the Southern Ocean campaign goes, our goal is to find the Factory Vessel, the Nisshin Maru.  The factory vessel is the ship to where every Whale is transferred after it’s been harpooned.  It’s the ship on which all whales are butchered, processed and frozen until the Whaling Fleet return back to Japan and the meat is sold for profit.  The factory ship is our goal.

The Nissian Maru has a slipway on the stern (the back of the ship), which is how the Whaling Fleet transfer whales from harpoon ships to the factory ship.  If one of Sea Shepherd’s ships can get behind the Nisshin Maru and stay there to block the slipway, the whaling fleet can not transfer whales, and therefore, the whaling season is over for them.  But that’s only the simple part.  The hard part is finding and getting to the Nisshin Maru.

It’s not the easiest thing in the world for Sea Shepherd to find the Whaling Fleet’s one factory ship, when it’s surrounded by 6 other ships trying to keep Sea Shepherd away.

During past campaigns, we’ve had extreme confrontations with the Whaling Fleet.  Between flash-bang grenades, water canons, and ramming our ships they have no fear in showing Sea Shepherd extreme rage when we find the Nisshin Maru.  During the 2009 anti-whaling campaign a small intercept vessel, The Ady Gil, working in part with Sea Shepherd to find the Factory ship, was rammed and sunk by the Whaling Fleet’s security vessel, the Shonan Maru.

Now, the entire crew’s main focus is the huge task of preparing our ships for the antarctic seas and for protection against the whaling fleet – and it isn’t an easy job. All crew members have been working very hard in order to insure the ships are complete for campaign by December.

While myself and the others on the deck team focus on repairing the ship, taking measures to protect her from the harsh weather and encounters with the Whaling Fleet, preparing and ensuring that the small fast boats are working well and ready for action.  The engineers are working on preparing the fundamental of our ship’s smooth running. The Galley are working hard to collect a sufficient amount of food to last us through 3 months of campaign and the aviation team working for the helicopter’s participation. It’s a huge job and everything needs extreme consideration and care.

Madi’s painted fingers

Elora working hard on the anchor chains

The Sea Shepherd ships are currently docked in different places all over Australia.  The ship on which I’m crew, the Steve Irwin, is in Melbourne, while the Bob Barker is in Sydney, the Brigitte Bardot is in transit and the Sam Simon is in an un-disclosed location.

Soon, we’ll leaving for campaign.  4 ships, 130 dedicated volunteers all on a mission to save whales.

Jersey Sea Shepherd volunteers have been doing a great job keeping Jersey’s beaches clean.

Sea Shepherd Channel Islands still working hard on Jersey, if you’re interested in becoming a Channel Island Sea Shepherd, please send an e-mail to this address: channelislands@seashepherd.org
For everywhere else in the world, send an e-mail to: volunteer@seashepherd.org

Pilot whales, Faroe islands and running away with Sea Shepherd.

Sea Shepherd’s vessel, M/Y Steve Irwin entering a fjord in the Faeroe islands.

Edit: Updated for August 2012 Gallery Magazine. 

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The most incredible thing happened the other year.
No, I didn’t win the lottery.  No, I wasn’t given the secret to life. Better:  I became a crew member for Sea Shepherd.

What’s Sea Shepherd, you ask? Well, Sea Shepherd is a non-profit marine wildlife conservation organisation, lead by Captain Paul Watson, co-founder of GreenPeace.   

Their endeavour to protect the marine environment spans across everything from Shark Finning in the Galapagos; the Dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan; Tuna poaching in the Mediterranean; the Seal hunts in Canada; to their most known campaign the Japanese Whale hunt in the Antarctic Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. 

Fundamentally, their goal is to end habitat destruction and wildlife slaughter in the world’s oceans.

My best friend had introduced me to Sea Shepherd late 2011 and we quickly became avid supporters of the organisation. I never would have dreamed that only a couple months later I would be joining them in their conservation efforts to protect marine wildlife.  

I had the tremendous privilege of becoming a crew member for Sea Shepherd when one of their vessels, the Brigitte Bardot, came to Jersey for the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in 2011.  This rather large figurative jump, and a stomach filled with butterflies, lead me onboard for the most incredible journey I would ever undertake in my life.  And, ultimately pursuing my passion for wildlife conservation.  

Beautiful high cliffs surrounded the Faroe islands.

The campaign that two of the Sea Shepherd vessels, the Brigitte Bardot and the Steve Irwin, were ready for next was the Faroe Islands Whale Slaughter campaign. 

The Faroese view this whale slaughter as a part of their culture, saying that it’s a tradition. But every year they slaughter up to 1,000 Pilot Whales as they’re migrating past the small group of Faroe Islands. The Islanders use speed boats and various other modern technology to trap the Pilot Whales into fiords, forcing the whales to beach themselves ready for the rest of the town’s people to finish them off and the sea water to turn red with blood. 

Pilot Whales in the Faeroe Islands

There has been an international ban on commercial whaling since 1982, but the Faroese govern their own whaling, refusing to accept the validity of the International Whaling Commission’s decision to end commercial whaling.  

At one point during the campaign, the ship found itself surrounded by a pod of over 200 Pilot Whales.

 

As the whales surrounded the ship, three in particular stopped just off the bow, we hung over the side in amazement. This single experience incapsulated exactly what we were here for – to prevent these whales from being murdered.  

Sea Shepherd’s mere presence during the whale hunt season was enough to stop the locals from attempting a “Grindadràp”   (Danish for Whale Kill) simply because the islanders wanted to avoid the bad publicity with Sea Shepherd having Animal Planet on board filming Whale Wars. Not a single whale was killed, It was a very, very successful campaign. 

Ryan and Erwin off of the bow, watching the pilot whales.

A few months after the Faroe Islands campaign, while I was onboard the Steve Irwin, we discovered that the Japanese whaling fleet would be returning to the Antarctic southern Ocean for their annual whale hunt. 

For the past 8 years, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have continued to go down to the Southern Ocean to prevent the whaling that takes place down there annually by the Japanese Whaling Fleet. 

 

Japan use a very small loop hole in the 1982 commercial whaling ban, that allows them to continue whaling under “research”.  

There has never been any published data on such research and the Japan continue to make a profit from it. It’s obviously a very controversial issue, and with the Japanese Whalers continuing to hunt three main species of whales that are nearing extinction, Fin; Humpback and Minke.  Needless to say, Sea Shepherd strongly opposes it.  And so do I.

The Steve Irwin and an Iceberg.

I had the tremendous privilege of being part of this last Antarctic campaign down in the Southern Ocean with Sea Shepherd. Having been given the ability to be a piece of everything that Sea Shepherd represented in their goal towards shutting down the illegal actions of the Japanese Whaling Fleet. 

 

During this campaign we were extremely successful.  Managing to prevent the Whaling fleet from taking home roughly 70% of their quota for the year.  With a self-given quota of just over 1,000 whales, the Whaling Fleet left with 267 whales making it our second most successful campaign to date, with the previous year being our most successful when the Japanese Whalers only took home 176 whales. 

 

Sea Shepherd’s Helicopter, Nancy Burnet, in action.

We have recently found out that the Japanese Whaling Fleet plan to, with their 8 ship fleet, return down to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary this year to continue their mission in reaching their 1,000 whale kill quota.   

Sea Shepherd will be following them down to Antarctica, and I will be joining them as crew once again.  

 

I have been a volunteer crew member for Sea Shepherd for a little over a year now.  After shortly coming back home to Jersey to see family, I shall be returning next month back to Australia where the Steve Irwin is currently in port.  From there we will be heading back down to Antarctica to oppose the Whaling Fleet.  And I invite you to join me every step of the way. 

 

For more information on Sea Shepherd, please visit their website:  www.SeaShepherd.org 

Sea Shepherd: Antarctica

It’s been a really, really long time since I updated last.  And a lot has happened.  But the main thing I want to talk about was Sea Shepherd’s Southern Ocean campaign that took place at the start of this year. 

For the past 9 years, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, lead by Captain Paul Watson, have continued to go down to the Southern Ocean to prevent illegal whaling that takes place down there annually by the Japanese Whaling Fleet. 
There has been a ban on commercial whaling since 1982.  However, Japan use a very small loop hole in this ban that allows them to continue whaling under “research”.  Even though, there has never been any published data on such research and the Japanese Whalers continue to make a profit from it.   It’s a very controversial issue, and with the Japanese Whalers continuing to hunt three main species of whales that are nearing extinction, Fin, Humpback and Minke.  Needless to say, Sea Shepherd Strongly opposes it.  And so do I. 

I had the tremendous privilege of being part of this year’s Antarctic campaign down in the Southern Ocean with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Having given the ability to be a piece of everything that Sea Shepherd represented in their goal towards shutting down the illegal actions of the Japanese Whaling Fleet. 

During this year’s campaign we were extremely successful.  Managing to prevent the Whaling fleet from taking home roughly 70% of their quota for this year.  With a quota of just over 1,000 whales, the Whaling Fleet left with 267 whales making it our second most successful campaign to date, with last year being our most successful when the Whalers only took home 176 whales. 

To get a first hand look at what Sea Shepherd got up to during this year’s campaign, tune into Animal Planet: Whale Wars.  The new season premier starts on the 1st of June! 

Until then, I shall leave you with a few images that I took during campaign.  

An Iceberg close to the Ross Sea.

The Steve Irwin and an Iceberg.

Kane teaching us how to play his instruments before leaving for campaign.

A couple of crew members photographing icebergs.

Icebergs.

Josh with a bottle filled with paint; preparing for a small boat action.

The Stern and helicopter deck of the Steve Irwin, leaving a trail through the pack-ice.

More icebergs. The pure beauty of the Southern Ocean.

The Steve Irwin carefully making its way through ice.