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Earth

Marineland Canada’s Possible Closure Raises Concerns About Remaining Animals

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NIAGRA FALLS, Ontario (June, 2025) — In Defense of Animals joins concerned organizations and activists in urging the Canadian government to protect the remaining animals at Marineland Canada as the beleaguered park officially announced the sale of its rides. The organization is calling for transfer permits to be denied that would send them to similar substandard facilities where they would continue to be bred and exploited for entertainment. 

Shocking new footage captured this month by TideBreakers has exposed many marine animals languishing in rapidly deteriorating tanks as the park is demolished around them, intensifying concerns for their safety and wellbeing.

Marineland has faced widespread scrutiny and multiple investigations for failing to provide adequate care for the animals confined there. Since 2019, 18 belugas, one orca, and one dolphin have died. Dozens of marine and land animals remain trapped in the now for-sale park, including31 belugas, four dolphins, three seals and two sea lions. 

Marineland Canada has long been a focus of national and international criticism for its treatment of marine mammals, particularly its population of beluga whales and orca Kiska, who passed away in 2023 after decades in solitary confinement. A series of government investigations, public protests, and evolving legislation have steadily increased pressure on the park to shut down.

For the past couple of years Marineland Canada has been seeking new ownership. Earlier this year, Marineland was permitted to split the park into four parcels to secure mortgages intended to fund the relocation of the marine animals. However, there are no safeguards requiring the animals to be moved to appropriate facilities. One potential destination reportedly under consideration for the belugas is Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in Zhuhai, China — a facility criticized for its poor conditions and animal exploitation. 

Such a transfer would violate both the spirit and intent of Canada’s federal Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act (Bill S-203), which prohibits cetacean captivity and breeding.

“The possible permanent closure of Marineland represents a turning point for how we treat animals,” said Hannah Williams, Cetacean Consultant for In Defense of Animals. “However, the government must step in to ensure these animals are properly cared for and prevent permits from being granted that would consign them to somewhere even worse. In Defense of Animals is calling on the Canadian government to ensure all remaining marine mammals at Marineland Canada are transferred to sanctuaries — not another marine park where they will suffer continued exploitation.”

For the Silo, Hannah Williams.

Politics

Tinkering Won’t Fix Crisis In Ontario Corrections And Jails

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In December of 2015, I toured the aging Thunder Bay District Jail. The nearly century-old jail had recently been the scene of a riot that led to a correctional officer being taken hostage – 70 inmates took control of the upper floor for a period of 20 hours.

In Ontario, assaults on correctional officers and other staff have more than doubled over the past seven years.

Last year, a report by the Independent Advisor on Corrections Reform described shocking abuse and disorder in Ontario’s detention centres – centres that are overcrowded and violent.

After violent incidents, inmates are often held in solitary confinement without access to rehab programs, and lockdowns are often the only recourse because of short staffing.

Much of the violence in Ontario’s detention centres is derived from smuggled weapons and drugs – but officers are restricted in their ability to conduct searches.

Front-line officers tell us they feel they are in danger – they are outnumbered, and they have little recourse when they’re attacked.

Ontario’s probation and parole system is a joke — that’s exactly what criminals have called it. Our probation and parole officers are not to blame. In many cases, they are actively discouraged from checking up on criminals by making house visits because of insufficient resources. Offenders are often left to self-report but, obviously, very few do.

Over 45,000 former inmates are out on parole or probation being forced to self-report. And 60 per cent of these individuals are deemed medium to high risk, that’s 27,000 individuals free to roam  our province.

How can this out of touch government make the claim that our communities are safe?

Why did this current government allow this to happen? That’s the question that needs to be asked.

The present provincial government recently introduced Bill 6, to supposedly deal with the issue. But this government has a history of producing incomplete, skeletal and poorly-thought-out legislation, and Bill 6 is no exception.  The Correctional Services Transformation Act is supposed to be a thorough overhaul of a broken correctional system, but it has the same deficiencies as most other legislation of late.

Obviously, the Liberals are inclined to think more bureaucracy is a solution to every problem, but more paper-pushing isn’t going to solve that problem.

Minor tinkering isn’t going to fix the crisis in corrections. The government must take serious and thorough action.

Has this government decided that the needs and wants of incarcerated criminals are more important than the rights of correctional officers and the order and safety of our detention centres are secondary to making criminals feel comfortable. Obviously, this legislation – Bill 6 — must be compliant with the written portion of our Constitution and our common-law traditions. But it must be said corrections officers and all prison staff have rights as well.

As my colleague MPP Rick Nichols, our critic for the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services has been saying, there has been a crisis in corrections for years in the making. Now with an election looming, the Liberals want us to believe — with Bill 6 — they’re experiencing a deathbed conversion. For the Silo, Toby Barrett, MPP for Haldimand-Norfolk.