To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’
Abstract Wild animals periodically encounter difficulties or suffer injuries that require human intervention and assistance. The natural assumption is that a surviving animal will, where viable, be released back to the wild. But is there a formal legal obligation for a rescuer to do so? This questio...
Published in: | Transnational Environmental Law |
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Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press (CUP)
2013
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s2047102512000222 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S2047102512000222 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s2047102512000222 2024-06-23T07:54:22+00:00 To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ Trouwborst, Arie Caddell, Richard Couzens, Ed 2013 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s2047102512000222 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S2047102512000222 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms Transnational Environmental Law volume 2, issue 1, page 117-144 ISSN 2047-1025 2047-1033 journal-article 2013 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s2047102512000222 2024-05-29T08:09:50Z Abstract Wild animals periodically encounter difficulties or suffer injuries that require human intervention and assistance. The natural assumption is that a surviving animal will, where viable, be released back to the wild. But is there a formal legal obligation for a rescuer to do so? This question arose recently in the context of ‘Morgan’, a female killer whale rescued in poor health in Dutch waters. Morgan was successfully restored to full health, but the Dutch authorities subsequently declined to repatriate her to the wild and, controversially, transferred her to a zoological facility in Spain. This article examines the largely unexplored legal obligations incumbent upon the Netherlands in respect of rehabilitated cetaceans, in the process exposing certain problems of clarity and consistency within the present regulatory framework. By necessary implication, this article identifies emerging issues of interpretation posed by the Morgan saga, illustrating the tensions between animal welfare and nature conservation – especially in the transboundary context – and concluding firmly that the Dutch authorities erred legally in making their final decision. Article in Journal/Newspaper Killer Whale Orca Killer whale Cambridge University Press Transnational Environmental Law 2 1 117 144 |
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Open Polar |
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Cambridge University Press |
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crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Wild animals periodically encounter difficulties or suffer injuries that require human intervention and assistance. The natural assumption is that a surviving animal will, where viable, be released back to the wild. But is there a formal legal obligation for a rescuer to do so? This question arose recently in the context of ‘Morgan’, a female killer whale rescued in poor health in Dutch waters. Morgan was successfully restored to full health, but the Dutch authorities subsequently declined to repatriate her to the wild and, controversially, transferred her to a zoological facility in Spain. This article examines the largely unexplored legal obligations incumbent upon the Netherlands in respect of rehabilitated cetaceans, in the process exposing certain problems of clarity and consistency within the present regulatory framework. By necessary implication, this article identifies emerging issues of interpretation posed by the Morgan saga, illustrating the tensions between animal welfare and nature conservation – especially in the transboundary context – and concluding firmly that the Dutch authorities erred legally in making their final decision. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Trouwborst, Arie Caddell, Richard Couzens, Ed |
spellingShingle |
Trouwborst, Arie Caddell, Richard Couzens, Ed To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
author_facet |
Trouwborst, Arie Caddell, Richard Couzens, Ed |
author_sort |
Trouwborst, Arie |
title |
To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
title_short |
To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
title_full |
To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
title_fullStr |
To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
title_full_unstemmed |
To Free or Not to Free? State Obligations and the Rescue and Release of Marine Mammals: A Case Study of ‘Morgan the Orca’ |
title_sort |
to free or not to free? state obligations and the rescue and release of marine mammals: a case study of ‘morgan the orca’ |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s2047102512000222 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S2047102512000222 |
genre |
Killer Whale Orca Killer whale |
genre_facet |
Killer Whale Orca Killer whale |
op_source |
Transnational Environmental Law volume 2, issue 1, page 117-144 ISSN 2047-1025 2047-1033 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s2047102512000222 |
container_title |
Transnational Environmental Law |
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2 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
117 |
op_container_end_page |
144 |
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1802646506851794944 |