Info by David Shukman - Science Editor

BBC News

A project authorised by the Norwegian Food Authority will see acoustic experiments carried out minke whales.

They aim “to use huge nets to drive 12 young minke whales into a holding pen. According to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, the official body that's authorised the project, each whale will be held for up to six hours. They will undergo blood tests and have electrodes fitted under their skin to measure their hearing.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority judges that the severity of the experiment will be "moderate" and it defines what that means: "Animals are likely to experience short-term moderate pain, suffering or distress, or long-lasting mild pain, suffering or distress," it said.

It is officially acknowledged that the whales will experience pain, particularly while they are held between two rafts while their hearing is tested.

Many scientists believe that it's not acceptable to expose young minke whales to the risks of sedation. “Our concern is that the capture of juvenile minke whales, forcible restraint and experimentation upon them for a period of up to six hours, has significant potential for causing injury and stress, potentially resulting in long-term impacts…"

And they are calling for the project to be cancelled because it may lead to "considerable trauma for the whales targeted, without contributing to useful science".

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Please help us in sharing this petition with as many people as you can and putting a stop to what is a cruel form of scientific experimentation.
- Sinead Henry