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An installation depicts a whale shark made of plastic bottles, at Rizhao Ocean Park in China’s eastern Shandong province in July 2018. Photo: AFP

Letters | Whales lined up on New Zealand beach a symbol of human war on Mother Nature

  • The heartbreaking death of these magnificent creatures is a sad reminder of our abuse of nature and wanton disregard for the consequences
Conservation
I am writing in response to the article, “145 whales die after becoming stranded on New Zealand island” (November 26). I was saddened to read about the mass stranding of such a large number of the magnificent mammals, and the photo of the beached creatures was heartbreaking. The pilot whales, which had not been in good health, were found half-buried in sand in remote Mason Bay, which means they had been there for a day or so. Most died and the rest had to be put down.

News reports like this remind us about the fragility of life, and how little things can have a big impact on our lives.

Even though conservationists and scientists are still wondering what or who was responsible for the death of the two large whale pods, I believe it is us humans and the whole world that should be blamed. Whale strandings have become more frequent and involve larger numbers than previously known. Self-centred and self-serving as we are, we care nothing about sacrificing Mother Nature for our own short-term gains, such as over-exploitation of natural resources and the production of enormous amounts of waste and pollution that pose a threat to marine and other wildlife.

As people focus only on their own benefits and desires, they do not notice that the abuse messes up the atmosphere and the elements, and causes global warming, threatening Mother Nature. We are the murderers destroying our own sole habitat.

Rachel Chan, Kwai Chung

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