With the busy summer time vacationer season in Niagara Falls, Ont., weeks away, Marineland says it nonetheless hasn’t determined if it should open this 12 months.
The beleaguered aquarium advised CBC Hamilton in an electronic mail Tuesday “no final decision has been made.”
“As Marineland has repeatedly publicly stated, we continue to be actively engaged in a sale process and transition to new ownership,” stated the assertion from the advertising and marketing division.
“The long-term health and welfare of the animals remains Marineland’s priority in the transition process.”
As of Tuesday, its important telephone quantity wasn’t working, its Fb web page was taken down and its web site made no point out of its reopening date.
This time final 12 months, its reopening date of June 28 was already posted to its web site, in line with web archives.
Two extra beluga whales have died at Marineland, bringing the whole variety of whale deaths to 17 since 2019. Animal rights activists say the Ontario theme park ought to be closed for good.
The park has historically closed for the autumn and winter, and reopened within the spring, however in recent times scaled again operations, stated Janet Adams, an employment co-ordinator on the Niagara Employment Assist Centre.
At its top, Marineland would rent 500 to 700 seasonal staff, she stated.
However final 12 months it employed just a few janitors and cashiers, and referred to as again staff from the 12 months earlier than, Adams stated.
This 12 months, they haven’t posted any summer time positions in any respect, impacting college students in search of work, she stated.
18 beluga whale deaths since 2019
Ontario’s Animal Welfare Companies has been investigating Marineland for 5 years, visiting the park greater than 200 instances since 2020.
Eighteen beluga whales, one killer whale and one dolphin have died at Marineland since late 2019 — together with one beluga earlier this 12 months.
The province declared in 2021 that each one marine mammals on the park had been in misery on account of poor water, however advised The Canadian Press final 12 months the water challenge had been introduced as much as commonplace.
In 2024, Marineland was discovered responsible beneath Ontario’s animal cruelty legal guidelines over its care of three younger black bears.
The bears lived in an enclosure that measured 48 sq. toes and their outdoors space was 360 sq. toes, and lacked water and climbing buildings, a provincial court docket heard.
Nonetheless, the bears wanted to be in an enclosure at the very least 10,000 sq. toes, animal welfare inspectors decided.
Lobbyist engaged on animal export permits
Final month, Marineland bought one in all its properties that included an workplace constructing to a numbered company for over $2.7 million, in line with land information. It’s down the highway from the sprawling important park.
Earlier this 12 months, it bought permission from the Metropolis of Niagara Falls to sever the massive park into 4 parcels to take out mortgages.
Tom Richardson, a lawyer who represents Marineland, stated at a public assembly in February that it wants the cash to proceed funding park operations and ultimately transfer its animals, together with greater than two dozen beluga whales, in addition to bears and deer.
“It’s to address the elephant in the room, and that is the moving of the whales and other creatures,” he stated.
After the animals are moved, the park will merge the parcels again collectively, quite than promote them off individually, stated Richardson.
In March, a guide for Marineland, Andrew Burns, registered as a lobbyist to “communicate with government officials” about acquiring permits to commerce endangered species internationally and export cetaceans, a classification of aquatic mammals that features whales and dolphins.
Burns didn’t reply to a request for remark.
