In June 2019, Canada passed Bill S-203: Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act, which outlawed the keeping, breeding, and capture of cetaceans.

Marineland is trying to get around the new law and has applied for an export permit to send five, captive-born beluga whales to the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, where the whales will be used for "research" purposes and still be forced to live a life in captivity. Mystic Aquarium has reported their intention to allow the whales to breed and has also requested an import permit from the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), informally known as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in order to bring the whales into the United States.

The Canadian Parliament's passage of Bill S-203 (Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act) was a monumental win for animal welfare and for marine mammals in captivity. Marineland's attempts to export these whales greatly contributes to the animal welfare issues Bill S-203 was enacted to stop.

Whales are highly complex, intelligent, and social beings that roam vast distances in the ocean. Scientific evidence shows that keeping them in display tanks causes them undue suffering and is unjustifiably cruel.

Please demand the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Honourable Bernadette Jordan to DENY the respective import and export permits.