In Reykjavik harbour there are four whaling vessels berthed,
their oil-fired steam engines ready to start at a moment's notice. But
since the Icelandic authorities halted their scientific whaling operations
in 1989, the four vessels have not left the quay. Threats of trade sanctions
from the US and boycott campaigns against Icelandic exports by anti-whaling
groups only make things more uncertain as to when Iceland's whalers will
again leave port. This is not the first time Iceland has suspended the
hunting of great whales. in 1916, follo-wing the over-exploitation of stocks
by foreign companies that had built their own landing stations, Iceland
banned the hunt until 1935, when it resumed under national control. Since
then, only one company has been allowed to conduct whaling operations,
with the number of cat-cher vessels limited to four.
This operation has concentrated on fin whales, which today number some 20,000 in Icelandic waters. Between 1948 and 1985, the annual catch of fin whales averaged 234 - in other words, a sustainable catch - with the majority of products from this harvest being exported.
In addition to this, about 10 fishing vessels have participated in the minke whale hunt. As in Greenland and Norway, Iceland's minke whale harvest has long been an integral part of the coastal fisheries. From 1914-50, the harvest catered to domestic demand only, with annual catches averaging fewer than 50 whales. Later, domestic demand increased, and export markets were also opened, and during the final years before the IWC moratorium came into effect in 1986, about 200 were being caught annually. The Central Atlantic stock from which these were taken now numbers about 72,000, so the harvest was undoubtedly sustainable.
In 1982, when the IWC decided to impose its moratorium on commercial whaling, Iceland's parliament carried a motion by a majority of just one vote declaring that it would not lodge a reservation against the IWC's decision. Iceland was counting on the moratorium being reassessed by 1990, as the IWC had indicated it would be, and quotas again being allocated, this time based on greater knowledge of whale stocks. But Iceland was to be disappointed, and left the IWC in 1992 on the grounds that the Commission was acting in conflict with the treaty on which it was based.
The use of whales as a food source in Iceland is well documented in manuscripts dating back to the 13th century.
Throughout history, whales have been harpooned or speared, driven ashore,
or gratefully received when they beached themselves. The Icelandic word
for a stranded whale, hvalreki, also means a «godsend».
Opinion polls show that some 90% of Icelanders support the resumption of whaling. «The question is not whether Iceland will resume whaling, but when,» said Iceland's fisheries minister Thorstein Palsson recently. Another question is how long Iceland's whalers can wait. «Nothing fatigues a ship more than having to stay at the moorings,» says Kristjan Loftsson, director of Hvalur AS, the company that owns the four whaling vessels laid up in Reykjavik harbour.
Icelandic combined fishing and whaling vessel.