After Marineland’s closure, officials are clashing with the government over what happens next to the park’s remaining beluga whales.
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A marine park in Canada has issued a disturbing ultimatum, saying it will euthanize 30 beluga whales if the federal government doesn’t take immediate action.
Marineland, located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, shut its doors in 2024 after years of declining visitors and growing controversy over animal welfare concerns. The park had long faced accusations of mistreating its marine animals, though management has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Now, the closure has left 30 beluga whales in limbo, sparking outrage from animal rights activists and growing pressure on the Canadian government to intervene before it’s too late.
Following the closure, Marineland attempted to arrange for the whales to be transferred to a sea life facility in China. However, those plans were halted by the Canadian government, which refused to grant the required export permit.
Canada’s fisheries minister, Joanne Thompson, blocked the move because the destination would continue to keep the animals in captivity rather than transitioning them into a protected or natural environment.
Thompson said she “could not in good conscience approve an export that would perpetuate the treatment these belugas have endured.”
The public watching Belugas at Marineland in 2012
Tara Walton/Toronto Star via Getty Images
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She added: "To approve the request would have meant a continued life in captivity and a return to public entertainment."
After her decision, Marineland responded with a severe warning and demanded government funding to continue feeding and caring for the whales. The park claimed it could not sustain the animals without financial help.
It gave officials until October 7 to reverse the decision or face the devastating possibility of the whales being euthanized if no solution was found.
A letter from Marineland sent to the fisheries ministry stated: "If we do not receive a response by that date, we will have no choice but to presume that the answers to our inquiries are negative."
The message continued, warning that whatever happened afterward would be “a direct consequence of the minister’s decision.”
Minister Thompson, meanwhile, has expressed her hope to see the whales moved to a sanctuary instead, possibly to a site currently being considered in Nova Scotia.
The park has been the target of protests for years, including this one in 2013
Tara Walton/Toronto Star via Getty Images
Marineland has dismissed that option, claiming that the proposed sanctuary location comes with “serious environmental issues that remain unresolved” and lacks clear financial stability. In its report, the park argued that the sanctuary project is still far from viable.
According to documents reviewed by the Canadian Press, at least 20 whales have died at Marineland since 2019 — 19 belugas and one orca. These deaths have further intensified criticism from advocacy groups calling for the park’s permanent closure and for surviving animals to be rehomed in sanctuaries.
Marineland has maintained that reports of animal mistreatment are exaggerated and insists that such allegations are used by animal welfare organizations as “propaganda” to attract donations.
Animal rights lawyer and Animal Justice executive director Camille Labchuk condemned the park’s stance, saying: "Marineland has spent decades profiting from keeping whales in miserable tanks, and is now sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars worth of property in Niagara Falls."
"Marineland has a moral obligation to fund the future care of these animals."