In November 2015, “Oscar” dolphinarium was opened in Truskavets. Before the opening of the dolphinarium International charitable organization “Environment-People-Law” filed a complaint to the State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region with a request to check whether functioning of the dolphinarium and conditions in which dolphins are kept comply with legal norms and with a request to call to account those who are guilty of the revealed violations.Similar complaints and appeals were sent to the State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region by citizens and organizations.
In the course of inspection of the dolphinarium that lasted from 3 December till 11 December 2015, the State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region detected the following violations:
- absence of the permit for keeping wild animals in captivity;
- absence of the permit for breeding Red List species in semi-captivity or captivity;
- absence of the permit for using animals for show;
- conditions of keeping and breeding wild animals in captivity do not comply with the current legislation.
The State Environmental Inspectorate issued a warning to the owner of the dolphinarium – Director general of “Aquadelf” Ltd. – demanding that all the above mentioned violations are eliminated by 30 April 2016 (Annex 1). The State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region also addressed Truskavets municipal court with the request to call to account administration of the dolphinarium and to confiscate animals. At the moment, there is no information whether the court proceeding was started.
Besides the lack of the above mentioned permits, there is a much more serious question directly related to the dolphins’ health and the possibility of their use for communication with people – is the dolpharium in Lviv region able to ensure natural sea water for dolphins? To prove the fact of delivery of sea water, the owner of “Oscar” dolphinarium presented the agreement on transportation of sea water from Illichivsk to Truskavets as well as the certificate on completion of works of 24 August 2015. The dolphinarium did not provide any other proof that they really use sea water, which makes us hesitant whether dolphinarium pools really contain sea water. The inspection also detected that water in the pools is purified with chlorine.
Meanwhile, in other cities of Ukraine dolphins are widely used for entertaining show and for human therapy. The animals are not kept in sea water, which is a violation of the Law of Ukraine “On Protection of Animals from Cruel Treatment”. In many dolphinariums water is either not pure or it is purified with chlorine, which adversely impacts health of dolphins (skin irritation, blindness) and humans.
EPL team continues research of dolphins use for entertainment and consequences of their captivity.
Ukraine is bound by many international obligations in the sphere of animal protection form cruel treatment, in the sphere of Red List animal protection that should be enforced by each of us.
Annexes:
Reply of the State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region to EPL’s information request of 24.12.2015, warning of the State Environmental Inspectorate in Lviv region № 425/04/156-94 of 11.12.2015, the protocol of the inspection of “Oscar” dolphinarium in Truskavets.
For further information please contact:
Nataliya Kuts, EPL lawyer
Email: office@epl.org.ua; natalia.kuts1@gmail.com,
tel.: (032) 225 – 76 – 82
