Numbers should also be a matter of intensified scientific investigation. This would suggest that the same number of passengers might be better served by ten boats each holding 100 passengers than by 100 boats each holding ten. Overcrowding would better be dealt with by anticipating the problem than by waiting until a threshold is crossed with dangers to animals and the industry. Even if no threshold exists, the aesthetics of whale watching might benefit by some measure of control over numbers. I am compelled to conclude with a word of caution.
Public policy requires more than theory to be credible and effective.
The mere possibility of deleterious cumulative impacts should not be interpreted as scientific proof that such impacts can be documented or even exist. It is a reasonable, however, to inquire and inquire we must. Whatever the outcome of this ongoing discussion any future regulatory and management regime that does not require us to expand our knowledge of these magnificent creatures would be remis.