Green Kudos are in order for the island nation of Palau! Minister of the environment announced the new 600,000 square kilometer whale sanctuary at a news conference Saturday. It was "Oceans Day" at the Convention on Biological Diversity meeting in Nagoya, Japan. The minister said that the declaration reflected the traditional values of Palauan culture that are closely linked to nature and living creatures. The tight archipelago of eleven islands has at least eleven species of cetaceans inhabiting the surrounding ocean, including a breeding population of sperm whales [photo]. Whaling in the past has significantly reduced the number of whales in the Pacific Ocean. The nation has only one Australian patrol boat to protect waters that cover an area about the size of Texas. It is asking
for help from neighboring countries to protect animals in the sanctuary from illegal fishing. Paulau became a independent nation in 1994 after the
U.S. trusteeship came to an end. Besides whales, there are 1500 species of fish and 700 species of coral and anemone in Palauan waters. Up until Saturday's declaration of a marine sanctuary, Paulau voted with Japan to end the international moratorium on commercial whaling. The decision may signal that Japan has lost another supporter for the resumption of comercial whaling.
