The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry

• Published in: Sustainability
• Main Authors: John McCollough, Henry F. Check
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Molecular Diversity Preservation International 2010
• Subjects: sustainable yield; whaling; sperm whales; baleen whales; baleen whale
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/su2103142

This paper presents empirical evidence which indicates that the introduction of petroleum based products on the American markets was a significant factor in reducing the demand for whale oil. As a result, the whaling industry, America’s 5th largest industry at the time, soon collapsed. A counterfactual study is then presented which suggests that if the introduction of petroleum based products had been delayed, then the increase in demand as a result of rising GDP per capita, as well as rapid industrialization, would have given whalers incentive to continue chasing after a diminishing whale population. This could have resulted in the baleen whale population being subject to unsustainable harvest levels.