OceanCare: Milestones in marine conservation

Milestones

OceanCare has set ambitious goals in marine conservation since 1989 and pursued them unwaveringly ever since. Our strategies are geared towards the long term and to tackle the root-causes. We do not stop until we have reached our goals.

Our paths through decades of marine conservation are lined with important milestones and successes. Dive into the history of OceanCare and learn what we have already achieved.

2021

Marine conservation

Spain bans oil and gas exploration in national waters.

In its report «Quiet Waters», OceanCare presents a conservation action plan for noise reduction in the marine protected area between the Balearic Islands and the Spanish mainland.

The Environmental Committee of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) votes to revise the guidelines for the reduction of underwater noise caused by ships in 2022.

At the Conference of the Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), OceanCare presents its socio-economic study on the impact of noise generated by fishing activities in the central Adriatic. The decision is made to extend the study to other sources of noise and replicate it in other sensitive regions of the Mediterranean.

OceanCare, as co-author of the report «Underwater Noise – the Neglected Threat to Marine Life», highlights the failure of EU Member States to implement the Marine Strategy Framework Guidelines.

OceanCare becomes part of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition and is granted observer status at the International Seabed Authority. OceanCare’s report, entitled «Deep-Sea Mining: A Noisy Affair», is the first analysis of the potential consequences of noise-generating activities that would result from the commercialisation of deep-sea mining and provides recommendations for action by decision makers.

OceanCare actively participates at two conferences that are laying important foundations for the future plastics treaty at the fifth UN Environment Assembly UNEA5.1 and at the Conference of Ministers at the WTO in Geneva. In a joint declaration, the ministers of over 120 countries support the creation of a global plastics treaty.

Animal & species conservation

OceanCare is granted observer status at the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and can contribute its expertise on underwater noise, among other things, and provide input on the development of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) publishes an up-to-date assessment of the status of whale and dolphin species in the Mediterranean. Much of the data on which the assessments are based, comes from research projects that OceanCare has supported for many years.

In the report «Under Pressure», OceanCare provides an overview of the conservation status and overall situation of whales and dolphins in European waters and thus creates a basis for defining targeted protection measures.

Southwest of the island of Crete, the three-year pilot phase of the «SaveMoby» system to prevent ship collisions with whales is successfully completed. The goal is for the system to become mandatory where it is not possible to relocate shipping routes from important cetacean habitats.

In September, more than 1,400 Atlantic White-sided dolphins are killed on the Faroe Islands. A petition launched by OceanCare for the attention of the EU Commission and the EU member states is signed by 40,000 people, and contributes to the EU member states strongly criticising this hunting practice.

With the support of OceanCare, the organisation British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) opens a hospital for seal pups in England and helps stranded and injured marine animals in more than 3,200 interventions.

In Venezuela, 70 percent fewer whale sharks are being fished along the country’s central coast than four years ago. This is due to voluntary agreements that the organisation CIT, with the help of OceanCare, has reached with coastal fishermen and local government representatives.

Environmental education

On World Cleanup Day, 150 volunteers collect litter on and in Lake Zurich, including bicycles, a balcony railing, fishing nets, disposable plastic and over 20,000 cigarette butts, at an event co-organised by OceanCare.

2020

Marine conservation

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea includes underwater noise as a transboundary form of marine pollution in its second assessment of the state of the oceans (World Ocean Assessment).

Following interventions by OceanCare, Spain rejects four applications from a Dutch oil company for seismic surveys in the whale migration corridor off the Catalan coast.

OceanCare attends hearings in the Spanish Parliament on a possible ban on oil and gas exploration in Spanish waters.

An analysis prepared by OceanCare together with other environmental organisations, including BUND, Coalition Clean Baltic, IFAW and Seas at Risk, reveals how inadequately the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive is being implemented and how EU member states are failing to effectively reduce underwater noise.

At the UN Environment Programme’s online event «Act #ForNature Forum», OceanCare speaks about plastic pollution in the ocean and emphasises the need for a global plastic treaty.

Animal & species conservation

Supported by OceanCare, BEES analyses the harvesting of endangered marine wildlife in Benin and Togo, presents initial results at the conference of the parties to the Convention on Migratory Species in India and thereby lays the foundations for a conservation action plan in West Africa.

With the help of OceanCare, CIT rescues 18 whale sharks in Venezuela. Thanks to this cooperation, already 60 stranded whale sharks have survived since 2018.

OceanCare founds the Sea Turtle Rescue Alliance, a global network for the rescue and medical care of injured sea turtles.

Supported by OceanCare, the Spanish Save the Med Foundation retrieves 180 ghost nets from the sea around the Balearic Islands, thereby freeing 89 sea turtles.

Environmental education

On World Cleanup Day, volunteers collect over half a tonne of waste in the water and along the promenade at Lake Zurich.

2019

Marine conservation

During the informal consultative process of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea on the ocean science decade, OceanCare’s demand to apply the precautionary principle wherever there is a lack of scientific data for important measures in marine conservation was taken up in the Chair’s report for the attention of the UN General Assembly.

At the UN Climate Action Summit in New York, OceanCare highlights to delegates from member countries how the reduction of underwater noise would contribute to climate action.

The Barcelona Convention declares the marine protected area between the Balearic Islands and the Spanish mainland as Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI).

The States bordering the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea commit to implementing the CMS Family Guidelines on Environmental Impact Assessments for marine noise-generating activities before licensing noise-intensive underwater activities. This resolution was prompted, among other reasons, by complaints initiated by OceanCare against some states in response to their seismic activities.

OceanCare becomes a partner organisation of the UNEP Mediterranean Action Plan, which coordinates the Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea Against Pollution

OceanCare becomes a member of the Global Ghost Gear Initiative and works to reduce the threat of ghost nets to marine wildlife.

Animal & species conservation

Together with European scientists and research institutes, OceanCare begins to develop the «SaveMoby» warning system to save sperm whales in the eastern Mediterranean from ship collisions.

OceanCare and the Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) conduct a workshop on the impact of underwater noise on fish and invertebrates and its socio-economic consequences, and develop recommendations to be presented at the GFCM Conference of the Parties. GFCM decides to conduct a corresponding study.

Following pressure from OceanCare and partners, 90 beluga whales and twelve orcas captured in Russia and destined for Chinese theme parks are released back into the wild.

The Dolphinaria-Free Europe coalition, co-founded by OceanCare, stops plans for a dolphinarium in Budapest.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) raises the protection status of shortfin and longfin mako sharks on the recommendation of the Species Survival Network, in which OceanCare has been active since 1997.

Environmental education

The documentary «A Feather to kill» shows the dolphin hunt in Peru. The film receives a nomination for the Director’s Award at the International Ocean Film Festival in San Francisco.

The Swiss SonntagsZeitung votes Sigrid Lüber, founder and president of OceanCare, as Swiss Woman of the Year 2019.

2018

Marine conservation

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea dedicates an entire informal consultative process to underwater noise. Nicolas Entrup and Dr. Lindy Weilgart are invited as experts and panellists.

Spain’s government declares the species-rich corridor between the Balearic Islands and the Spanish mainland, through which many whales migrate, a marine protected area.

OceanCare points out the urgency of reducing noise in international waters in the first official negotiations on the new UN High Seas Agreement (BBNJ).

The UN Environment Programme’s governing body grants OceanCare a transition from the «NGO Major Group» to the «Science & Technology Major Group», where the organisation’s voice carries more weight.

OceanCare publishes a meta-study on the impact of noise on fish and marine invertebrates.

Animal & species conservation

The Abidjan Aquatic Wildlife Partnership, co-founded by OceanCare, develops an action plan for West Africa to curb the harvest of endangered aquatic species.

At the IWC meeting in Brazil, OceanCare helps to ensure that the whaling moratorium is upheld and not further undermined by whaling countries.

The makers of the film «Whale like me», co-funded by OceanCare, win the trust of whalers in Japan and on the Faroe Islands with their dialogue-based work and appeal for a paradigm shift pertaining to the treatment of whales.

OceanCare and Dolphin Biology and Conservation launch a dolphin conservation project in the northern Adriatic which faces heavy fishing efforts.

OceanCare provides British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) with financial support to enable the purchase of transport trailers, stretchers and life jackets. The organisation is deployed 1,279 times to rescue whales, dolphins, seals and sea turtles.

Based on OceanCare’s recommendations, the tour operator Hotelplan Suisse removes dolphinariums and swimming programmes with dolphins from its entertainment programme offerings.

Environmental education

With the «strip us» petition, OceanCare calls on major Swiss wholesalers to strip organic fruit and vegetables of plastic. The Swiss wholesaler Coop promises to increase its plastic-free sales of these products.

In southern Italy, OceanCare collects a total of 500 kilogrammes of plastic and waste on 6,000 m2 of beach.

OceanCare and the Mallorcan organisation Asociación Ondine are developing a three-day educational module on plastic, targeting 2,088 students in 34 schools who did hands-on work on beaches collecting 101,815 plastic objects.

2017

Marine conservation

At a workshop organised by OceanCare and NRDC in Croatia, and supported by the German Federal Foundation for the Environment, 65 representatives from 15 countries from the fields of politics, science, tourism, environmental and marine protection develop an action plan for noise reduction in the south-eastern Mediterranean Sea.

The signatory States to the Bonn Convention adopt guidelines relating to environmental impact assessments to be conducted prior to noise-intensive activities. The preparation of these guidelines was co-facilitated by independent experts from OceanCare.

OceanCare succeeds in getting the UN to mention underwater noise, if not as a form of pollution, then at least as a stress factor, in its action plan for achieving its Sustainable Development Goal 14 «Life below Water».

Animal & species conservation

Die Abidjan Convention, OceanCare, the World Bank and the US AID Program for West Africa establish the Abidjan Aquatic Wildlife Partnership, to address the harvest of protected aquatic species.

The Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora introduces a permit requirement for the export of trophies of protected animals such as the polar bear at the urging of the Species Survival Network, in which OceanCare is an active stakeholder.

OceanCare releases a short film on YouTube about the illegal hunting of dolphins and sharks in Peru. More than half of the 218,000 views come from South America.

OceanCare und Dolphin Biology and Conservation complete research on dolphins in the Greek Gulf of Corinth and succeed in getting the World Conservation Organisation to designate the area as an important habitat for marine mammals.

At Cap Blanc in Mauritania, the population of the Mediterranean monk seal, protected by CBD-Habitat with the help of OceanCare, increases to 300 animals, reaching the level of 1997, when it was almost wiped out by an algae plague.

Environmental education

OceanCare’s edutainment video on plastic waste in the ocean is featured in an exhibition at the Hong Kong Science Museum, which is visited by up to 4,000 children every day.

OceanCare launches the «I Care» campaign against single-use plastic and records 1,975 individual pledges to reduce plastic consumption in the «Plastic Diet» campaign.

In cooperation with OceanCare, Gebr. Heinemann, a major distributor and duty free retailer in the travel market, reduces the distribution of disposable plastic bags in its shops by 70 percent.

2016

Marine conservation

OceanCare succeeds in getting the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) to enter into dialogue with NATO and National Armed Forces to mitigate the noise hazard of military sonars for whales and dolphins.

OceanCare experts co-author the study «Overview of the Noise Hotpots in the ACCOBAMS Area», the first comprehensive survey of noise-generating activities in the Mediterranean Sea.

Environmental impact assessments will become compulsory in EU waters prior to noise-generating activities, as called for by OceanCare and NRDC.

The oil company Cairn Energy bows to the protests initiated by OceanCare and Alianza Mar Blava and abandons its plans for oil exploration in the Gulf of Valencia.

The US Navy, under pressure from NRDC, OceanCare and various other organisations, suspends sonar operations in the waters around Hawaii and off the coast of California for a period of three years.

OceanCare is involved in preparatory negotiations for the UN High Seas Treaty (BBNJ).

OceanCare becomes a partner organisation of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), a regional agreement of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

OceanCare becomes a member of the international coalition Break Free from Plastic, which campaigns for a reduction of plastic along the entire lifecycle.

Animal & species conservation

OceanCare becomes a partner organisation of the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Bonn Convention/CMS).

In Ischia, 40 scientists compile data on the status of the common dolphin in the Mediterranean in a workshop funded by OceanCare, and call for the highest protection status for the dolphin species.

In Peru, three fishermen are charged with the illegal killing of dolphins as a result of a 2013 undercover research study sponsored by OceanCare. The Peruvian government has outlawed the harpoons being used to kill dolphins.

In Peru, a film team hired by OceanCare documents the illegal trade in shark fins and the sale of baby shark meat at local markets.

In Senegal, OceanCare and AWI are raising awareness of the threat to manatees with a poster displayed throughout the country, informing people that the killing of the animals is illegal.

Seventy airlines and transport companies voluntarily refrain from transporting shark fins following an appeal by OceanCare and its partner organisations.

2015

Marine conservation

Protests by OceanCare and its partner organisation lead to the suspension of planned developments of new oil wells in the Croatian Adriatic, off the Canary Islands and around Kangaroo Island.

The High Seas Alliance, in which OceanCare plays an active role, achieves a breakthrough: The UN General Assembly passes a resolution to develop a new agreement to protect biodiversity in the high seas

OceanCare presents its report «Quiet Zones» to the ACCOBAMS Member States and calls for noise reduction in three particularly sensitive areas of the Mediterranean Sea.

Animal & species conservation

Together with its partner organisations, OceanCare succeeds in getting the World Zoo Association to ban the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums until its members stop the practice of dolphin hunting.

In undercover research, and with the help of OceanCare, Mundo Azul documents the illegal hunting of dolphins and sharks in Peru. A short film is sent by OceanCare to all Peruvian embassies worldwide, as well as to Regional Fisheries Management Organisations and conservation agencies.

OceanCare is a co-founder of the Dolphinaria-Free Europe coalition, which immediately succeeds in blocking plans by Poland to build a dolphinarium, and the Greek Cypriot government to drop plans to lift a current ban on the import of whales and dolphins.

Environmental education

OceanCare’s brochure on plastic pollution in the sea is translated into Greek, thus making it available in seven languages, and it is now being used by organisations on three continents as part of environmental education.

2014

Marine conservation

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) issues non-binding guidelines for reducing the noise of commercial ships.

A revision of the EU Directive on Environmental Impact Assessments now also requires such assessments to be carried out prior to seismic exploration.

More than 210,000 people sign a protest launched by OceanCare and AVAAZ against the planned oil exploration off the coast of Ibiza.

OceanCare becomes a member of an EU working group given the task of implementing the Marine Strategy Framework Directive in European waters.

In response to OceanCare’s long-standing appeal, the International Whaling Commission is now allowing representatives of accredited non-governmental organisation to have their voices heard.

Animal & species conservation

OceanCare is working with partners to ensure that the noise-sensitive Cuvier’s beaked whale is granted the highest international protection status by the Member States of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species. The polar bears receive increased attention in Appendix II.

The Swiss government issues an import ban on seal products, which OceanCare and the Fondation Franz Weber had been campaigning for since 2008.

Environmental education

The edutainment video on plastic waste in the oceans is shown on Edelweiss Air flights.

OceanCare sensitises Swiss travel agencies to the criteria of respectful treatment of wildlife, which should be observed when putting together tourist packages.

2013

Following intervention by the Species Survival Network, in which OceanCare plays an active role, the trade in live manatees as well as products from these animals is banned by the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Together with its partners, OceanCare succeeds in getting the US authorities to ban the import of 18 beluga whales caught in Russia and destined for amusement parks.

Due to the Swiss import ban on dolphins, the dolphinarium «Connyland» closes its doors. Switzerland is now dolphinaria-free.

Under the auspices of OceanCare, the Silent Oceans campaign to curb underwater noise is launched, and joined by 27 international partner organisations.

The ACCOBAMS signatory states adopt a resolution paving the way for environmental impact assessments to become mandatory in the agreement area prior to seismic exploration.

OceanCare launches an information campaign against marine litter and calls for minimising individual plastic consumerism.

2012

OceanCare studies on the toxic contamination of dolphins lead to a slump in the consumption of dolphin meat. Amazon Japan removes it from its product range. The number of dolphins killed in the infamous Taiji whale hunt decreases.

Since 1995, OceanCare had been campaigning for an import ban on whales and dolphins. This perseverance is paying off: Switzerland enacts a corresponding law.

The government of the Maldives withdraws its permit for a dolphinarium project after OceanCare intervenes.

The International Whaling Commission requires whaling countries to actively educate their populations regarding the health risks of consuming whale meat.

Following international protests, South Korea renounces the resumption of whale hunting.

2011

The United Nations Economic and Social Council grants OceanCare Special Consultative Status.

The Parties to the UN Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (Bonn Convention/CMS) commit to noise reduction in marine protected areas.

The Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) adopts the proposal of OceanCare and Pelagos to establish a protection zone for sperm whales in southern Crete. Its implementation is up to Greece.

The EU commits Greece to ban fishing with bag and trawl nets in the waters around Kalamos, in line with the action demanded by OceanCare and Tethys. As a result, isolated common dolphins and larger schools of fish have been observed once again around the Greek island.

A transparency debate initiated by OceanCare in the International Whaling Commission as early as 2001 results in stricter governance guidelines that make «motivational gifts», which previously influenced the voting behaviour of other states, impossible.

OceanCare submits 77,776 signatures to the Swiss Parliament protesting against dolphin imports into Switzerland and against the construction of new dolphinaria.

OceanCare presents the EU Ambassador in Bern with 60,500 signatures opposing dolphin imports into the EU and the construction of new dolphinaria.

OceanCare and the Fondation Franz Weber hand over 97,758 signatures to the Swiss government in protest against the import of and trade in seal products from Canada.

2010

In the Mauritanian sanctuary, which OceanCare has been helping to monitor since 2006, the number of rare Mediterranean monk seals has increased to 200 animals. In 1997, an algae plague had almost wiped out the population.

The Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) commit to identifying measures to protect marine species from the impact of underwater noise. An OceanCare expert has co-authored a scientific thesis on underwater noise.

The Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) advocates noise reduction in three biodiversity-rich areas of the Mediterranean Sea and invites OceanCare to be a member of the working group on underwater noise.

The UN General Assembly calls on the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to conduct a socio-economic study on the impact of noise on fish stocks and fisheries, in response to OceanCare´s initiative.

In accordance with the demands of the OCEAN2012 alliance, of which OceanCare is a member, illegal fishing activities in the European Union will now face punishments in the form of heavy fines.

Sensitised by OceanCare and Tethys, coastal fishermen from the island of Kalamos are calling on the Greek government to enforce current fishing laws. They are voluntarily increasing the mesh size of their nets and treating the fish with special care during the spawning season.

Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) are investigating the toxicity of whale and dolphin meat based on OceanCare´s studies.

2009

The Oscar-winning documentary, «The Cove» exposes the dolphin hunters in Japan and documents the efforts of the Save Japan Dolphins Coalition, in which OceanCare is active.

OceanCare has formed an alliance of 49 environmental and consumer protection organisations, including the Consumers Union of Japan, which is campaigning in Japan to stop the sale of whale and dolphin meat contaminated with harmful substances and thus indirectly to combat the practice of hunting and killing the animals.

OceanCare and the Environmental Investigation Agency prove that the Japanese limit of mercury in whale meat is being exceed by as much as 5,000 fold, and convince the International Whaling Commission (IWC) to cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO).

The advocacy work of OceanCare, the Fondation Franz Weber and IFAW are paying off; The EU Parliament approves an embargo on seal products from Canada.

2008

At the request of OceanCare and Oceanomare Delphis, the Italian government declares the waters north of Ischia to be a protection zone for common dolphins.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) recognises the harmful impact of ship noise and initiates the development of guidelines for quieter shipping.

A legal opinion issued by OceanCare reveals the lack of opportunities for non-governmental organisations to participate in the conferences of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).

In the Swiss Animal Protection Ordinance, regulations on dolphin husbandry are tightened to meet OceanCare’s demands.

The health authorities of the Faroe Islands recommend avoiding the consumption of pilot whale meat because of its high toxic contamination levels.

As part of the Save Japan Dolphins Coalition, OceanCare is collaborating with US dolphin conservationist Ric O´Barry to end the Japanese hunting drive.

2007

OceanCare President Sigrid Lüber receives the «Trophée de Femmes» environmental prize from the Fondation Yves Rocher.

OceanCare, NRDC and the International Ocean Noise Coalition (IONC) prevent the US marine authorities and the US military from deploying high-power sonar in Hawaiian waters.

Following a study by OceanCare and the Environmental Investigation Agency on mercury levels, a Japanese supermarket chain removes whale and dolphin meat from its shelves.

Following the intervention of OceanCare and partner organisations, the Dominican Republic renounces the import of twelve dolphins from Japanese hunting expeditions.

Together with its partners, OceanCare succeeds in protecting the whales off the coast of Chile.

2006

OceanCare and Pro Wildlife present a catalogue of possible sanction for illegal whaling to the International Whaling Commission.

OceanCare is responsible for drafting the chapter on underwater noise and its consequences for marine life for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s Ocean Atlas.

Under pressure from OceanCare and the Environmental Investigation Agency in Japan, the 7-Eleven company removes whale and dolphin meat from its shelves.

Together with its partners, OceanCare uncovers illegal dolphin imports into Mexico. As a result, the country bans all trade in dolphins.

2005

The UN General Assembly recognises underwater noise as one of the five greatest threats to marine mammals and one of the ten greatest threats to the oceans as a whole.

2004

OceanCare raises the issue of underwater noise during the informal consultative process of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and succeeds in getting the United Nations to address the problem for the first time.

OceanCare and the International Ocean Noise Coalition (IONC) stop seismic testing in the Gulf of Mexico.

The EU Parliament passes, by a large majority, a resolution for a ban on active low and medium frequency military sonar systems to detect submarines in EU waters. Spain subsequently bans the use of such sonar off the coast of the Canary Islands, with the result that there have been no more atypical strandings of marine mammals since then.

OceanCare becomes a partner organisation to the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS).

2003

After receiving OceanCare’s petition and having a face-to-face meeting with OceanCare experts and Members of the European Parliament at their headquarters in Brussels, NATO rules that prior to military sonar tests, whale sightings will be conducted to determine if whales and dolphins are located nearby. If so, they should generally be driven away from the test area by means of gradually increasing sounds.

OceanCare is a co-founder of the International Ocean Noise Coalition (IONC), which is supported by 150 organisations worldwide. The coalition calls for a moratorium on high-power military sonar in EU waters.

2002

At the «whale zone» symposium, renowned international scientists, government representatives and organisation representatives exchange views on the protection of the oceans and their inhabitants.

With a petition to NATO signed by more than 93,000 people, OceanCare launches the marine protection programme «Silent Oceans» to tackle underwater noise.

2001

OceanCare paves the way for a historic resolution for political transparency within the body of the International Whaling Conference (IWC) with an international legal opinion on vote-buying.

2000

The Swiss dolphinarium «Connyland» closes a discotheque near the dolphin pool after protests from OceanCare.

Whale meat consumption in Japan slumps following the publication of a study on the contamination of whales initiated by OceanCare and the Japanese consumer protection organisation Safety First.

The Swiss wholesaler Coop removes all shark products from its shelves at OceanCare’s request.

1999

At the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting, the Swiss delegation submits a legal opinion by OceanCare which states that the organisation is responsible for the conservation of small whales as well as large whales.

1998

The International Whaling Commission (IWC) is beginning to look into the health of whales and the danger of consuming whale meat contaminated with harmful substances.

On the basis of an OceanCare study on the contamination of pilot whales, the health authorities of the Faroe Islands recommend restricting the consumption of pilot whale meat.

Knie’s Kinderzoo discontinues keeping dolphins in captivity after protests by OceanCare.

OceanCare staff member Noëlle Delaquis receives the Elisabeth Rentschler Animal Protection Award.

1997

The Museum of Transport in Lucerne gives OceanCare a sculpture of a humpback whale tail fin, which is anchored on an island in Lake Zurich, in recognition of its work and commitment.

Jamaica withdraws the fishing permit for two dolphins destined for Knie’s Children’s Zoo as a result of OceanCare’s campaign «Export Reggae Music not Dolphins».

OceanCare becomes a member of the Species Survival Network and begins to campaign for the protection of endangered marine species at the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

1995

Together with its partners, OceanCare prevents the construction of a salt production plant that was planned in the Gulf of California in an area where grey whales raise their young.

1993

OceanCare is instrumental in helping Mexico establish a biosphere reserve in the Gulf of California, where the endangered vaquita dolphins live.

1992

The start of OceanCare’s involvement at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting.

OceanCare helps to prevent a dolphinarium project in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

Sigrid Lüber receives the Dow President’s Environmental Care Award.

1989

OceanCare prevents a dolphinarium project in the Swiss canton of Valais.

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About OceanCare

OceanCare has been committed to marine wildlife protection since 1989.

The organisation holds Special Consultative Status on marine issues with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

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