A Vancouver Park Board meeting that touched on the emotionally charged issue of cetacean captivity was interrupted by animal rights activists Monday night.
The meeting took place days after the death of Aurora, the Vancouver Aquarium's last resident beluga whale, which reignited the captivity debate that last came to the forefront two years ago following the release of the documentary "Blackfish."
Commissioner Sarah Kirby-Yung introduced a motion calling for a plebiscite on the issue, but not before the meeting was briefly brought to a halt by a handful of protesters who held up signs with the names of cetaceans that have died under the aquarium's care.
Activists also called for Kirby-Yung to remove herself from any future decisions regarding cetacean captivity, arguing the commissioner, who is a former aquarium employee, has a conflict of interest – concerns she dismissed after the meeting.
"I haven't worked there for about six or seven years. I have no relationship with the aquarium, I have no conflict of interest," she told CTV News. "I actually am the one that's bringing forward the motion that's saying look, we need to revisit this and it's time to have a conversation."
The protesters were escorted away after a brief demonstration, but continued to protest outside the meeting.
There were months of public debate over the issue of whale and dolphin captivity at the aquarium in 2014, with many passionate activists calling for a ban on the practice, which they view as cruel.
Though the Park Board eventually voted to prohibit the aquarium from letting captive cetaceans breed, that decision was reversed months later.
Aquarium staff have defended its whale and dolphin programs, arguing they contribute to conservation research that's increasingly important amid the ongoing impacts of climate change.
An independent report commissioned by the Park Board found the aquarium's research and rescue work could be compromised under a captivity ban.
Though the aquarium lost both Aurora and her daughter Qila this month, to a cause staff are still working to pinpoint, it has other belugas on loan to various SeaWorld facilities in the U.S.
