The twin issues of climate change and poaching whales have contributed to the steady and worrying decline in the number of whales, citing concerns that the species is heading towards extinction.
Many species of whales are protected, but that had not deterred the illegal fishing and sale of whales. NGO’s such as Green Peace have stated that international accords and conventions were not properly implemented.
The number of beached whales in the Maldives had risen of late, some of the whales are alive, their progress hampered by the low tides. In many of those cases, the citizens of those islands had worked together to create deeper temporary passages so the fish can move to deeper waters.
Protection of such species is essential to the Maldives, given our reliance on the nature for the economy.
Director General at Ministry of Environment Mohamed Zahir has stressed on the importance of inculcating a love for the nature from a young age onwards, citing that parents and the schools have to take proactive measures.
His NGO, Ecocare carries out programs aimed at school children every year.
Whales facing extinction
