A hunt of pilot whales, a species a part of the dolphin family, in the Faroe Islands has caused widespread public outcry after 1,428 animals were killed in the annual tradition. During the hunt participants drive the dolphins using speed boats and jet skis into shallow corrals where they are killed. Many environmentalists have deemed the tradition cruel while locals assert that it is an important cultural tradition and food source for the island. Residents of the area have also explained that the occasional pilot whale hunt, in conjunction with other traditional means of food production, has allowed the islands to remain largely self-sufficient.
According to Danish MP (Member of Parliament) for the Faroe Islands, Sjurdur Skaale, the killing of white-sided dolphins in particular (another unusual aspect to the recent hunt as long-finned pilot whales are usually the main species hunted) is “legal but not popular”. He also stated that the killing is humane as it is done with a “specially designed lance, which is used to cut the spinal cord of the whale or dolphin before the neck is cut” and that it should take “less than a second to kill”. Hunters must also obtain an official training certificate to legally kill any animals.
As a member of the United Nations, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 14, one of fifteen goals established to focus on sustainability by the United Nations in 2015, is relevant to the consequences and future of this tradition. The goal aims “to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”. If deemed an unsustainable practice, the hunt may be grounds for the UN to suspend or terminate the Faroe Islands' role in the treaty. Prime Minister of the Islands, Bárður á Steig Nielsen has said that the most recent hunt (1500 animals) was almost three times larger than the average (600 animals) as hunters underestimated the size of the pod and that the hunt is, under normal circumstances, sustainable. Chairman of the Faroese Whalers Association, Olavur Sjurdarberg also emphasized the unusuality of the recent hunt saying, “it was a big mistake” and that “most people are in shock about what happened”. The meat, which is usually shared between participants and with the local community is now being offered to neighboring islands as the excessive number of dolphins hunted created a surplus.
In response to the global outcry and backlash Nielsen has said that they “will be looking closely at the dolphin hunts, and what part they should play in Faroese society” and that “the government has decided to start an evaluation of the regulations on the catching of Atlantic white-sided dolphins''.
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