The Turks and Caicos Islands have long been considered a haven for wild dolphins and whales, with laws forbidding their confinement. So a proposal to establish dolphinariums on two islands in the archipelago has been met with a storm of protest.
When Jamaica-based Dolphin Cove’s plans to build the attractions in TCI first became public in 2012, thousands signed a petition demanding the application be thrown out, and planning chiefs were bombarded with more than 100 angry letters from across the globe.
Further contention erupted when it emerged that the TCI governor had amended regulations to allow marine mammals to be kept for display, exhibition and performance.
The BBC reports that then Governor, Ric Todd, lauded the economic boost he said would “significantly complement” the British Overseas Territory’s tourism offerings.
Todd was not alone.
Many residents in Grand Turk welcome the fiscal stimulation they believe will be triggered by the facility, which recently secured outline planning permission.
But for its opponents – still staunch after a three-year fight – the real battle is just beginning.
The BBC reports notes Barbara Young, of environmental non-government organisation Pride, argues that tourists who visit dolphin parks are often ignorant of the animals’ plight.
Young, who campaigned for the release of some of the UK’s last remaining captive dolphins into the waters of TCI, has been campaigning for dolphins for decades. She alleges that dolphins are routinely fed medication to prevent stress-induced ulcers and given regular invasive endoscopies to monitor their condition.
This assertion is backed by a World Animal Protection/Humane Society of the United States report called ‘The Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity’, which states that cetaceans in captivity are routinely given antibiotics and ulcer medications, and are in need of vitamin supplements because they are being fed nutrient-deficient frozen fish and have a history of premature death from a variety of causes.
The BBC notes that, for many dolphins, enclosure sizes are less than one percent of their natural habitat range.
The BBC reports also notes one of the most outspoken critics of building dolphin parks here in the TCI, is Former Director of the Department of Environment and Maritime Affairs, Kathleen Wood, who described the “exploitation of dolphins for economic gain” as “the moral equivalent of slavery.”
