Japan withdrew from the International Whaling Commission on June 30th 2019, and restarted its whaling operations within its 200nm EEZ on July 1st. There were criticisms that by this decision Japan is turning its back on international society, and that it should have persevered at the negotiating table. However, the decision came only after 30 years of negotiations with anti-whaling countries, in which all attempts at discussion and compromise in scientific, legal, economic, and cultural areas ended in failure. We must ask now where the whaling issue is headed.
Selected Papers No.25

High resolution time/space underway data can readily be available by the participation of a private domestic liner vessel servicing the coastal seas in the voluntary observations. The results of the measurements are summarized in temperature, salinity and pH variation, taken in the coastal areas susceptible to large environmental change. The coastal-going vessels can provide in-situ data with less delayed mode by using the mobile communication infrastructure, and we will continue to promote that more private coastal vessels can take part in the voluntary observation ship program.

Osaka Bay is blessed by a natural environment that conveys the ocean’s abundance, being the location of a port and airport that are fundamental supports of the Kansai area economy and a fishery indispensable to the local diet. We believe it is possible to create an unprecedented vision of a unified Osaka Bay that brings together its various areas and organically integrates their respective strengths. I hope to contribute to increasing the abundance in people’s lives and the attractiveness and development of the whole of Osaka Bay and its surrounding areas.