Significant progress was made on a number of scientific, conservation, and procedural measures adopted by 65 countries at the 69th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Lima, Peru.
Most crucially for the US and several other countries with Indigenous communities who depend on these hunts, the Commission, for the first time, used a new procedure to extend hunting quotas, known as catch/strike limits, for six years beginning in 2026. The catch limits are based on the cultural and nutritional needs of the Indigenous communities and follow advice from the IWC’s Scientific Committee, which found that these hunts would not harm the whale populations involved.
The Commission created the extension procedure in 2018, and this year’s meeting was the first opportunity to use it. The catch limits adopted this year are unchanged from previous levels, but the new procedure provides greater certainty and security for Indigenous whale hunts and for the communities that rely on them for subsistence.
"We are pleased that the IWC reached consensus on extending for six years the important subsistence whaling quotas that Alaska Natives and the Makah Tribe need for food and are part of their cultural heritage,” said Ryan Wulff, US Commissioner to the IWC. “This is particularly significant because it was the first time the Commission used this new automatic extension procedure, which provides more predictability to these communities.”
The Commission also reached a consensus on two resolutions to enhance its cooperation with other international organizations like the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and to seek synergies with newly established international biodiversity agreements, such as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. As well, and notably, the IWC also established a Science Liaison Group, which will enhance the communication and linkages between the Commission and the Scientific Committee.
On the conservation front, the Commission continued to review and make progress on its important and ambitious cetacean conservation efforts. The Commission endorsed several new conservation management plans, including one for Central American humpback whales, which benefited from contributions from US scientists, as well as partners in Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, and Nicaragua.
The Commission recognized the career contributions of Dr. David Matilla, formerly of NOAA, who was integral in launching and expanding the IWC Global Whale Entanglement Response Network. Though Dr. Matilla retired, the network continues to help bring safe and effective entanglement response capability around the world. Since its inception in 2013, it has trained more than 1850 people in 42 countries, spanning five continents.
The IWC also reviewed and endorsed new work plans for its Conservation and Scientific Committees, which will lead to greater collaboration between the two in examining the impacts of marine debris, climate change, and other risks on the health of cetaceans. A new work plan for the Commission’s Standing Working Group on Bycatch will mean that this group will continue to conduct cetacean bycatch mitigation training and pilot projects worldwide, in part thanks to financial support from the US.
For the first time in its 69-year history, the renowned and prestigious IWC Scientific Committee will be chaired and vice-chaired by women scientists. Starting at the close of this year’s Commission meeting, Dr. Lindsay Porter of the United Kingdom will take over as chair of the committee, and Dr. Aimée Lang of the US—a research biologist with NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center—will be vice chair. Both will serve two-year terms. The Scientific Committee is composed of the world’s leading cetacean experts and applies the latest relevant science when providing comprehensive advice to the Commission for use in setting international policy.
“The United States views the IWC as the premier international forum for whale conservation and management.“ said Wulff. “The United States will continue to take a leadership role to ensure the IWC remains able to function effectively in its role addressing critical issues related to cetacean conservation and the management of whaling.”
