Japan: Whaling Fleet Leaving Antarctic
February 28, 2007
TOKYO – Japan has decided to pull its whaling fleet out of the Antarctic and end this year’s whale hunt early after a deadly fire crippled its mothership, officials said Wednesday.
The fire aboard the Nisshin Maru two weeks ago killed one crew member and left the vessel unable to sail under its own power for 10 days.
That prompted strong protests from the New Zealand government and from the environmental group Greenpeace over potential oil and chemical spills or damage to penguin colonies.