Activists end anti-whaling campaign

26 Feb 2010, 4:34 pm   -   Source: AAP
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Anti-whaling activists are returning to Australia after an engine problem forced them to end this season's Antarctic campaign against Japanese whalers.

Anti-whaling activists are returning to Australia after an engine problem forced them to end this season's Antarctic campaign against Japanese whalers.

Head of the Sea Shepherd group Paul Watson said he had ordered the Bob Barker ship to stop following the Japanese and return to Tasmania.

Capt Watson said the ship had a fuel valve problem that could cause an engine breakdown.

Capt Watson labelled this season's campaign the most successful in its six year history of campaigning in the southern ocean.

"We have done the best job possible with the resources available to us, and I am confident that we have prevented the slaughter of hundreds of whales," he said in a statement on Thursday.

Capt Watson said its recent efforts had stopped the Japanese whaling fleet from killing any whales for three weeks.

There are up to two weeks left in the whaling season, depending on weather conditions.

Sea Shepherd Australian director Jeff Hansen said back up vessel, the Steve Irwin, was also headed back to Tasmania.

"Steve Irwin is running out of fuel, so it's heading back to Hobart and Bob Barker has also got some trouble so it's heading back to Hobart as well," he told AAP.

"It's coming to the end of the whaling season and we've been on them now for ... three weeks now where no whales have been killed so it's been a big success."

Mr Hansen said the actual number of whales killed would not be known until the Japanese whaling fleet returns to port.

"We shall announce how many whales that they took, how many minke whales and how many endangered fin whales," he said.

Sea Shepherd tails the Japanese ships and attempts to block them from firing harpoons.

Mr Hansen likened this season's campaign to one of cat and mouse.

"We've had a tail on our vessel and then we've been chasing them and they've been running from us and generally when they're running, they're not whaling, so it's been a huge cat and mouse game this year but the reality is a lot of whales have been saved.

"Each year, they're spending more and more money to head down there, but they're catching less whales so our plan is to sink them economically."

The Steve Irwin is expected to arrive in Hobart on March 6, with the Bob Barker following a few days later.

Both vessels plan to depart later in March for the Mediterranean to oppose Bluefin tuna poachers.

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