Marineland requests U.S. permits for beluga and dolphin transfers

The future of the remaining belugas at Marineland — which one advocate hoped could have an Inuit-led solution by releasing them into the Arctic Ocean — may instead be resolved if the Ontario amusement park succeeds in transferring the whales to American institutions.

Marineland, the Niagara Falls, Ont. amusement park which has been closed since late 2024, has asked the federal government for urgent approval to send its remaining beluga whales and dolphins to aquariums in the United States.

Sources with Marineland said the park is prepared to go ahead with its backup plan to kill the 30 belugas and four dolphins if permits aren’t granted, The Canadian Press reported this week.

Federal Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson met Wednesday with Marineland representatives at their request.

“During the meeting, the minister was presented with new export permit applications. The minister will review them expeditiously,” said Ira Khedkar, press secretary for Thompson, in an email to Nunatsiaq News Thursday.

Marineland tried in the fall to relocate the whales to Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in China, but Thompson denied the request. She said approving the relocation permit would have meant “a continued life in captivity” for the belugas.

The 2019 Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act bans the keeping of whales, dolphins and porpoises in captivity or for being used for entertainment.

Jason Etok, who grew up in Nunavik, suggested last fall that Inuit leaders provide a habitat for the belugas in Hudson Bay, Ungava Bay or the St. Lawrence River.

However, Fisheries and Oceans Canada said the belugas shouldn’t be released back into the wild.

Animals held in captivity for more than two years or that are born there lack survival skills and may pose disease and genetic risk to wild populations, the federal department said.

Since then, there have been efforts around the world to find a solution for the remaining mammals at Marineland.

Nunatsiaq News contacted Marineland for comment but did not receive a response as of Thursday afternoon.