The Mediterranean’s first sanctuary for dolphins which have lived in captivity will open off Italy’s coast subsequent 12 months, as demand for re-homing rises with the closure of marine parks throughout Europe.
“We should develop a brand new mannequin for managing dolphins in a pure however supervised atmosphere,” Carmelo Fanizza, head of the San Paolo Dolphin Refuge, advised AFP.
Located off the coast of Taranto, within the southern Italian area of Puglia, the sanctuary nonetheless wants a closing inexperienced gentle from the federal government.
But the location can be prepared by the tip of this month and the primary dolphins are anticipated to reach “no later than May or June 2026,” Fanizza mentioned.
Animal rights issues have pushed international locations reminiscent of Canada and France to ban the seize of dolphins, porpoises and whales, whereas rising numbers of marine parks are shutting.
This has created a burning query: what to do with the cetaceans, which might reside for many years and have largely solely recognized life in captivity, that can’t be launched into the wild?
The San Paolo Dolphin Refuge received permission from the Italian authorities in 2023 to make use of a seven-hectare (2.5-acre) space within the Gulf of Taranto, close to the island of San Paolo.
The spot is “sheltered and shielded from the ocean, winds and prevailing ocean currents,” Fanizza mentioned, dismissing issues that the location was close to the economic coastal metropolis of Taranto.
The metropolis is house to one in every of Europe’s largest steelworks, which has been embroiled in a air pollution scandal however is presently working at decreased capability.
“Improvements have been made to the amenities, in order that the standard of the breathable air, the water column and the sediments within the space presently pose no threat to animal well being,” Fanizza mentioned.
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Sanctuary
Located round 4 kilometres (almost 2.5 miles) off the coast, the power has a most important 1,600-square-metre (17,200-square-foot) enclosure, a smaller one for potential transfers and a veterinary one for quarantine instances.
It has a floating laboratory, lodging so employees will be on web site in a single day, and a meals preparation space.
It can also be outfitted with a video surveillance system – each above and below water – in addition to a collection of sensors at sea, which transmit knowledge to a management room in Taranto.
The sanctuary’s building has been largely paid for by Jonian Dolphin Conservation – the analysis organisation behind the initiative – with help from non-public donors and European public funds.
The web site’s working prices are estimated at between €350,000 and €500,000 ($408,000 and $584,000) per 12 months.
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It might legally accommodate as much as 17 dolphins, however “the quantity will completely not be that,” Fanizza mentioned, stressing the significance of their well-being.
“Our objective at this stage is just not to absorb a lot of animals however to establish a bunch that, given its medical situation, behaviour and social construction, could possibly be supreme for initiating such a challenge,” he mentioned.
Muriel Arnal, head of French animal rights group One Voice, which has lengthy campaigned for marine sanctuaries, advised AFP that Europe presently has round 60 dolphins in captivity.
“Once you have got a mannequin that works effectively, you possibly can replicate it,” she mentioned, including that she hoped San Paolo would give a house to French dolphins too.
