Japan’s Resumption of Commercial Whaling and Its Duty to Cooperate with the International Whaling Commission

35 J. Envtl. Law & Litigation, Forthcoming

42 Pages Posted: 2 Oct 2019

See all articles by Chris Wold

Chris Wold

Lewis & Clark College Paul L Boley Library

Date Written: September 20, 2019

Abstract

Japan has withdrawn from the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and has resumed commercial whaling. Although the IWC’s moratorium on commercial no longer applies directly to Japan, Japan must fulfill its duty to cooperate under customary international law and the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) by giving “due regard” to the rights of IWC members. This requires, for example, that Japan participate meaningfully in meetings of the IWC and the IWC Scientific Committee, submit data on whales struck and lost as well as whales caught as bycatch, and implement the Revised Management Procedure (RMP), the scientifically-vetted method for calculating sustainable catch limits. Moreover, to ensure its whaling is sustainable, Japan must prohibit whaling, at least until significant data gaps are filled in relation to the stocks that Japan hunts. Japan must also prepare a transboundary EIA prior to whaling. Despite these international law obligations, Japan has resumed commercial whaling without a scientifically-accepted understanding of the stock structure for sei and minke whales, without using the IWC’s scientifically-vetted algorithm for setting sustainable catch limits, and without preparing a transboundary EIA. Consequently, IWC members that are also UNCLOS Parties may vindicate their rights using the binding and compulsory dispute settlement provisions of UNCLOS.

Keywords: Japan, whaling, duty to cooperate, customary international law, UNCLOS

JEL Classification: K33, K32

Suggested Citation

Wold, Chris, Japan’s Resumption of Commercial Whaling and Its Duty to Cooperate with the International Whaling Commission (September 20, 2019). 35 J. Envtl. Law & Litigation, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3457554

Chris Wold (Contact Author)

Lewis & Clark College Paul L Boley Library ( email )

10015 S.W. Terwilliger Blvd.
Portland, OR 97219
United States

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
175
Abstract Views
741
Rank
352,405
PlumX Metrics