International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling

States-parties to the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (in blue)[1]

The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling is an international environmental agreement aimed at the "proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry".[2] It governs the commercial, scientific, and aboriginal subsistence whaling practices of 88 member states.[2]

The convention is a successor to the 1931 Geneva Convention for Regulation of Whaling and the 1937 International Agreement for the Regulation of Whaling, established in response to the overexploitation of whales in the post-World War I period.[3][4] Neither instrument was effective, but each provided the framework for the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, which was spearheaded by the United States and signed by 15 countries in Washington, D.C., on 3 December 1946;[3] the convention took effect on 10 November 1948.[5] A protocol broadening the scope of the convention's enforcement was signed on 19 November 1956.

The objectives of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling are to protect all whale species from overhunting; establish a system of international regulation for whale fisheries to ensure proper conservation and development of whale stocks; and safeguard for future generations the important natural resources represented by whale stocks. The primary instrument implementing these aims is the International Whaling Commission, established by the convention as its main decision-making body.[6] The IWC meets annually and adopts a binding "schedule" that regulates catch limits, whaling methods, protected areas, and the right to carry out scientific research involving the killing of whales.

  1. ^ Membership Archived 26 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine. iwcoffice.org. Retrieved on 23 July 2013.
  2. ^ a b "International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling" (PDF). iwcoffice.org. Washington. 2 December 1946. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  3. ^ a b "International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling". United Nations. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  4. ^ Hourihane, J. O. B. (1 July 1937). "International Agreement for the Regulation of Whaling". Nature. 140 (3535): 180–181. Bibcode:1937Natur.140..180J. doi:10.1038/140180a0. ISSN 1476-4687.
  5. ^ Key Documents Archived 21 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine. iwcoffice.org. Retrieved on 23 July 2013.
  6. ^ "Where did the idea of the International Whaling Commission come from and why?". wwf.panda.org. Retrieved 5 January 2021.