1,340 grey and common seals may have been shot in Scotland to protect farmed salmon and wild salmon fisheries in 2011. The quota for 2012 is 1,100. It beggars belief that there has been so little outrage about this completely unnecessary slaughter.
This attitude is short-sighted to say the least. What should be realised is that ‘nature tourism’ is worth £1.4 billion to the Scottish economy annually, and seeing a seal will be top of the wish list of most visitors. The quickest way to see an end to this cull would be if the Scottish Government and people felt that tourism could be threatened by the killing of seals.
The crying shame is that this cull needn’t take place. In 1990 the ‘dolphin safe’ label was introduced by the US Dept. of Commerce and has spread so successfully around the world that it is now almost universally accepted that you make canned tuna as cetacean friendly as possible. Salmon farming could just as easily do the same for seals.
Scotland has ample history to learn from. Seals are being culled for the same reason that made the wolf extinct in the 17th century (to protect livestock), and Scottish otters are still reeling from when they were killed in their thousands to protect wild salmon and trout. Thankfully otters have since received full protection and are recovering.
It is time to stop the cull. The seal is Scotland’s largest wild predator and millions of people will pay good money to see them alive and in their natural environment. The reputation of Scotland is at stake here, and the current seal cull shames Scotland and the Scottish people.
