IFAW: Latin America’s whale watchers - one million and growing

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Tuesday, 24, Jun 2008 12:00

(Santiago, Chile – 24 June 2008) - Latin America’s whale watching industry has surged in growth, with more than one million whale watchers expected this year alone, new research reveals.

New report The State of Whale Watching in Latin America, released today by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and other whale conservation groups, also reveals that direct income from ticket sales for whale watching trips has more than quadrupled in the last 15 years.

The report was released today at the annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Santiago, Chile, where more than 80 countries from around the world are debating the future of whaling and whale protection.

“Whale watching is a win-win solution for whales and coastal communities worldwide,” said Robbie Marsland, Director of IFAW UK. “The phenomenal success of Latin America’s whale watching industry proves whale watching is also a more sustainable and lucrative alternative to killing whales.”

Between 1998 and 2006, the number of countries offering whale watching trips in Latin America has expanded from eight to 18. Much of the income has helped to benefit the region’s small, rural coastal communities, where whale watching operations are primarily located. The number of these communities benefiting from the economic development of whale watching has risen dramatically from 56 to 91. During the same time period, the number of whale watchers increased from 243,892 to 885,679, generating around £40m from direct ticket sales and around £140m from both direct and indirect tourism expenditure (hotels, restaurants, etc).

Whale watching is also one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry. Since 1998, Latin America’s whale watching industry has grown three times as fast as the world tourism industry overall, and 4.7 times as fast as the Latin American tourism industry.

“This is a sustainable industry that benefits coastal communities socio-economically, educationally and environmentally for years to come. It’s the responsibility of our governments to defend our right to whale watching versus whaling,” said Beatriz Bugeda, Director of IFAW Latin America.

Some 64 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises – 75% of known cetacean species – are found around Latin America, providing whale watchers in the region with an incredible diversity of species to watch and learn about.

Ends

For more information on the report or interviews please contact Jacob Levenson in Santiago on tel (56) 9 323 0256, mobile 001 508 648 3570 or email jlevenson@ifaw.org or Clare Sterling (UK) on 0207 587 6700 or email csterling@ifaw.org