Park board approves bylaw banning whales, dolphins at Vancouver Aquarium

VANCOUVER - A bylaw banning whales, dolphins and porpoises in captivity has been approved by Vancouver's park board.

The board voted 6 to 1 in favour of approving the bylaw at a meeting Monday night, while hundreds of protesters gathered outside loudly voicing their opposition to the ban.

The bylaw prevents the Vancouver Aquarium from bringing new cetaceans to its facility in Stanley Park, but three cetaceans currently housed there will be allowed to stay.

The aquarium has said the bylaw will hinder efforts to rescue marine mammals and conduct research.

But Parks Board Chair Michael Wiebe has said scientists have found that cetaceans are best treated in a natural habitat and research data captured from aquariums is no longer necessary.

The debate over whether the aquarium should house whales, dolphins and porpoises heated up after two belugas died at the facility last fall after being exposed to an unidentified toxin.