It is believed only 100 Western Pacific Greys exist in the world and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature has included it on its list of critically endangered species.
In a statement IFAW said, “Shell has announced plans to expand its current project by building a platform and pipeline through the whales’ feeding area. A group of 11 environmental groups, including IFAW, WWF and Greenpeace, have warned Shell its current construction plans pose a critical threat to whales [and] have offered alternate construction plans that would protect whales but Shell has refused to change their current plans.”
According to Marcel Bertsch of IFAW, “This is a very clear cut issue. Shell can expand its Sakhalin project in a way that protects whales, or it can continue with its stated plans and drive the Western Pacific Grey Whales into extinction. IFAW isn’t asking Shell to shut down the project, we are simply asking them to build around the feeding area.”
“IFAW is going to push for a public dialogue on the threat Shell poses to whales. There are reasonable alternatives and Shell’s employees, shareholders and investors need to know that this is an important decision. If they choose to proceed recklessly, they are literally choosing the extinction of one of the world’s most majestic whales,” added Bertsch.
