Translated by a colleague - I thought this might be of interest to the community: Taiji pushing through plan for "whale ranch" Yomiuri Newspaper, Feb. 28th, 2012 http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20120227-00000680-yom-soci <http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20120227-00000680-yom-soci>In the town of Taiji, plans are moving forward for a "whale ranch" where visitors can interact with whales and dolphins that are confined to the bay. The facility is scheduled to open in 5 years, and aiming to attract 300,000 visitors per year. Although the town has been the target of criticism following The Cove, town officials and businessmen came up with the idea to show how Taiji has "long been a place where whales and dolphins coexist [with the townspeople]." According to the plans, a 40,000 sq. meter area of Moriura Bay in the northwest part of town would be portioned off with nets, and minke whales, pilot whales, and dolphins would be "ranched" there. Visitors could enjoy being in the presence of whales and dolphins in the wild, including swimming with trained dolphins and going out into the bay in kayaks. And this "ranch" does not only serve as a tourist destination--it also will be a site for cetacean research. Using part of a closed-down retirement home and part of the current town Whale Museum's "Whale Beach Park," the plans are to convert these into lodgings and research facilities respectively. The areas around the park will become a "scientific research area" and will be open for researchers to observe the reproduction of the cetaceans in the bay. Naomi A. Rose, Ph.D. Senior Scientist, HSI-Wildlife nrose@hsi.org<mailto:nrose@hsi.org> t +1 301.258.3048 f +1 301.258.3082 Humane Society International 700 Professional Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20879 USA hsi.org<http://www.hsi.org/> Join Our Email List<http://www.hsi.org/join> Facebook<http://www.facebook.com/hsiglobal> Twitter<http://twitter.com/hsiglobal> [Description: Humane Society International - Celebrating Animals | Confronting Cruelty | Worldwide]<http://www.hsi.org/>
