Earth Island Institute today denounced the government of Japan's proposal to reopen commercial whaling and trade in meat of the California gray whale at the same time that the giant Japanese Mitsubishi Corporation is proposing to build a massive industrial salt plant at San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, the last pristine gray whale breeding lagoon. All the time, they and their Mexican counterparts, ESSA, have been planning to build a new industrial salt plant complex on the shores of San Ignacio Lagoon, a protected gray whale breeding ground. A salt plant operation is no more appropriate for this reserve than are dams in the Grand Canyon National Park or an oil refinery in Yosemite National Park. The proposed salt plant at San Ignacio Lagoon threatens the gray whale population with construction and operation noise, air and water pollution, and increased access by humans to the lagoon and surrounding desert.
Gray whales use the lagoon annually to give birth to their young.
The production of salt will dump large quantities of toxic bitterns as a byproduct. The salt plant would further disrupt the local habitats of native wildlife and plants. The tourist trade and local fishing, which are the mainstays of the local economy, would also be heavily impacted. While the Mitsubishi Corporation is publicly claiming to be concerned for the welfare of gray whales, the Japanese government is setting the stage for renewing the bloody slaughter of gray whales on the high seas. This is a preliminary step in the effort by Japan to renew harpooning of gray whales and encourage other countries to resume whaling so the meat can be sold to Japan.