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Report Recommends Expanding SeaWorld Killer Whale Tanks
Source: Associated Press
Report Recommends Expanding SeaWorld Killer Whale Tanks
By JULIE WATSON, ASSOCIATED PRESS SAN DIEGO — Sep 25, 2015, 4:02 PM ET
A state government report released Friday recommends allowing SeaWorld to expand its killer whale facility at its San Diego park, outraging environmentalists who say the tanks could be used to breed more orcas to be kept in captivity.
The staff of the California Coastal Commission made the recommendations ahead of the regulatory board's Oct. 8 meeting where it is scheduled to vote on SeaWorld's permit request for the $100 million expansion.
The staff recommends attaching nine conditions to the permit that include requiring SeaWorld to not house newly captured orcas at its San Diego location. The report states that while no orcas have been taken from U.S. waters since the 1980s, the new facility could "potentially create the incentive to commit such capture in the future, which would be an adverse impact to California's coastal resources and to a species of special biological significance."
Tens of thousands have written the commission about the issue. Many expressed opposition to the plans, calling the expansion a marketing ploy to boost its plummeting marine-theme park attendance and not address their belief that orcas should not be in captivity at all. Attendance has dropped since the release of the popular 2013 documentary "Blackfish," which suggested SeaWorld's treatment of captive orcas provokes violent behavior.
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By JULIE WATSON, ASSOCIATED PRESS SAN DIEGO — Sep 25, 2015, 4:02 PM ET
A state government report released Friday recommends allowing SeaWorld to expand its killer whale facility at its San Diego park, outraging environmentalists who say the tanks could be used to breed more orcas to be kept in captivity.
The staff of the California Coastal Commission made the recommendations ahead of the regulatory board's Oct. 8 meeting where it is scheduled to vote on SeaWorld's permit request for the $100 million expansion.
The staff recommends attaching nine conditions to the permit that include requiring SeaWorld to not house newly captured orcas at its San Diego location. The report states that while no orcas have been taken from U.S. waters since the 1980s, the new facility could "potentially create the incentive to commit such capture in the future, which would be an adverse impact to California's coastal resources and to a species of special biological significance."
Tens of thousands have written the commission about the issue. Many expressed opposition to the plans, calling the expansion a marketing ploy to boost its plummeting marine-theme park attendance and not address their belief that orcas should not be in captivity at all. Attendance has dropped since the release of the popular 2013 documentary "Blackfish," which suggested SeaWorld's treatment of captive orcas provokes violent behavior.
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Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/report-recommends-approving-bigger-seaworld-orca-tanks-34041085