Dear Friends, I write to you with a heavy heart having heard the latest on the SeaWorld Blue World Project. After a storm of letters and E-Mails asking the Coastal Commision to deny SeaWorld the permission for their Blue World Project, staff from the California Coastal Commision (CCC) have now written a report that recommends approving the Blue World Project. http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Report-Recommends-Approving-Bigger-SeaWorld-Orca-Tanks-329553211.html SeaWorld is known for making political donations and have heavily upped their PR campaign by spending a lot of money buying themselves voices. It is not clear why the CCC staff report recommends Blue World's approval so we can only imagine. Please write to the California Coastal Commision one more time and tell them what you think about SeaWorld's tank expansion. Over 75.000 people have already done so with the majority opposing the tank expansion. Our last E-Mail action was a great success and had gone viral! Please E-Mail your comments to: SeaWorldOrcaFacility@coastal.ca.gov Attached below is my personal E-Mail to the CCC if anyone needs any inspiration what to write. We can't let SeaWorld expand their tanks in the USA and allow them to open up a new cetacean market in Asia! All the best, Kathleen ---------------------------------------------- My E-Mail to the California Coastal Commision: Dear California Coastal Commission, I am writing to you with utter disappointment and disbelief about the news that the CCC staff has advised the approval of the SeaWorld Blue World Project. http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Report-Recommends-Approving-Bigger-SeaWorld-Orca-Tanks-329553211.html I am shocked that none of the scientific evidence for the suffering of orcas in captivity has swayed your mind in any way. Surely, you are aware of the current debate about keeping orcas in captivity and advocates such as Dr. Ingrid Visser, Lori Marino, Naomi Rose, Paul Spong, and Ken Balcomb opposing the captivity of orcas because there is clear evidence that orcas do not and cannot thrive in captivity? Damaged teeth that need to be drilled, social hierarchy fights that can be fatal, higher mortality rates for captive orcas, and a long list of stereotypical behaviours such as chewing on the gates and walls, swimming in circles and taking a breath at exactly the same spot or motionlessly floating on the water surface, are all signs that captive orcas are suffering from stress, anxiety, boredom or even depression. You cannot possibly be ignoring these facts by writing a report that recommends this outdated, cruel and clearly detrimental form of entertainment for one of the most social, intelligent, self-aware species on our planet? If you are unaware of the legitimate evidence showing that orcas do not thrive in captivity, please see the following website: http://www.seaworldfactcheck.com/index.htm If you require any further evidence for the shortened life spans of captive orcas, please refer to this peer-reviewed paper on orca mortality available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mms.12225/abstract The Coastal Commission seems to be misinformed by SeaWorld not just about the facts regarding captive orcas mortality, well-being and mental health but also seems to be in the belief that SeaWorld is not interested in acquiring orcas from the wild anymore. I am certain that SeaWorld has assured you many times that they will uphold the Virgin Pledge which commits them to no longer acquire animals captured from the wild past February 2014 or their progeny. However, that random date permits SeaWorld to trade animals with other facilities around the globe that have been captured before that date, such as the wild caught Russian orcas Narnia and Nord captured in 2012 and 2013 and any of their offspring. Narnia and Nord are currently performing in a Russian facility and were trained according to SeaWorld protocols as Russian facilities get advice from SeaWorld on the training and habituation of orcas to captivity. SeaWorld already has deals with China and Russia. SeaWorld uses Chinese social media to promote their business overseas and helps to train the Russian captured orcas. China buys wild caught orcas from Russia and Russia has increased the capture quota of orcas to 10 animals per year since SeaWorld announced their expansion plans. SeaWorld plans to expand to the Asian market by 2020 and the Blue World Project would allow them to breed 4-5 new calves per facility which could then be shipped to the new facility. SeaWorld Asia could simply not sign up to the Virgin Pledge as a new facility and trade cetaceans all over Asia with other facilities, without legal minimum requirements for facilities to house cetaceans and no legal framework to protect trainers from getting in the water with the animals. SeaWorld could open up a new market for cetaceans in Asia, in some ways one could argue that it has already done so with the current boom in China, and will likely use Blue World as a the first step onto the Asian market. Economically, this plan is wonderful but for the animals involved it is not just dangerous as transportation is so stressful for cetaceans that it increases their risk of death, it is also morally questionable to separate young calves of ages 8 and younger from their mothers which SeaWorld has done plenty of times. To give just one example, SeaWorld separated Keet from his mother Kalina when Keet was just 18 months old and still very dependent on his mother. This will likely be the new trend in Asia, especially if SeaWorld manages to open that new park and becomes the new leader on an unregulated cetacean market. By approving SeaWorld's Blue World Project, the California Coastal Commission would turn a blind eye to all of these issues and allow SeaWorld to expand to Asia and open up a new market for the captures of cetaceans in Asia. Please, do not approve the Blue World Project of SeaWorld and do not turn a blind eye to the suffering of captive orcas. Yours sincerely, Kathleen Haase