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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, November 14, 2002

Maui set to forbid dolphins on exhibit

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

WAILUKU , Maui — A proposal to ban the exhibition of captive dolphins and whales will be considered for initial approval tomorrow by the Maui County Council.

"The bill is a simple but powerful statement,'' said Councilwoman Jo Anne Johnson, who introduced the measure last year. "This legislation says that the people and government of the County of Maui recognize that cetaceans are intelligent beings who deserve to remain in their natural habitats.''

The council's Human Services and Economic Development Committee recommended passage of the bill last month.

The measure is aimed at blocking the Kewalo Basin Marine Mammal Laboratory from building a research facility on Maui with an exhibition component.

The laboratory's Dolphin Institute had announced plans to build a facility within the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation's proposed $20 million Maui Nui Park in North Kihei, a project that received approval from the Maui Planning Commission a couple of years ago.

Construction of Maui Nui Park — which was to include an indoor amphitheater, lu'au garden, wedding chapel, shops, wharf and boat rides — has not begun, and it is unclear whether the institute still has designs on moving there.

Officials with the Dolphin Institute and the Weinberg Foundation could not be reached yesterday.

The Dolphin Institute also was reportedly interested in moving to the proposed Ko Olina Resort & Marina, but that fell through when the Legislature didn't grant tax credits for the project.

Johnson said it's inhumane to keep dolphins and whales in captivity.

"Dolphins and whales play a significant role in Hawaiian history and culture and in our modern, tourism-oriented economy. So, it's obviously appropriate for the Maui County Council to protect these special creatures from exploitation.''

The bill has prompted hundreds of letters from animal activists and petitions with 15,000 signatures. Those who have expressed support include singer Bonnie Raitt and the producers of the "Free Willy" movies, Lauren Shuler Donner and her husband, Richard Donner, who are regular Maui visitors.

Maui's Pacific Whale Foundation also has been waging a campaign against the Dolphin Institute project.