Please NO Whale Blubber Boom !
Dick Roche, Ireland
Dear Madam or Sir,
I am deeply concerned to learn that the EU will soon be voting on a proposed tariff of 7.7% on botanical Jojoba Esters which are virtually identical to spermaceti, which is derived from the blubber of whales. If adopted, this tariff (CN 1518) will provide an incentive to Europe's cosmetic industry to buy Spermaceti instead of Jojoba Esters.
This demand will boost long term efforts by whaling nations to overturn the ban on commercial whaling imposed by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), and the ban on international trade in whale products imposed by CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species). Today, blubber is a waste product of Norway's whaling - unwanted and dumped at sea. But a market for spermaceti could revitalise Norway's and other whaling industries. Whales could once again be hunted for their blubber - a devastating step backwards to the 20th century when species after species of whale was driven to the brink of extinction.
As a representative on this issue in the EU, I urge you in the strongest terms to vote against the Jojoba Tariff. Please oppose the proposed jojoba tariff (CN 1518) as proposed in TAXUD/0768/2006-EN-FR-DE, and to support the retention of the zero-tariff on Jojoba (CN 3404), at the 406th meeting of the Customs Code Committee, Tariff and Statistical Nomenclature Section (Agriculture/Chemical Sector), TAXUD/B/3.
Yours sincerely,
