The animal park Marineland by the Niagara Falls in Ontario closed last year, but still has the country's last whales in captivity.
Now the money is running out and without immediate financial contributions or export permits, the animal park will be "faced with the devastating decision of euthanasia", writes Marineland, which claims that it would be a direct consequence of the Minister of Fisheries' decision not to approve the export.
The plan was for the animals to be sent to a Chinese amusement park, but the application for an export permit was recently rejected by the authorities. The Minister of Fisheries Joanne Thompson does not want the beluga whales to be kept in captivity or used for entertainment, reports CBC.
She recently said in an interview that she has "looked the beluga whales in the eye" and felt that they belong in the sea.
