Europe’s largest aquarium is now a likely destination for some of the 30 belugas still circling the tanks at Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ont. 

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada last week endorsed a rescue plan that would see all remaining whales split up and sent to Oceanogràfic València in Spain or one of four U.S. locations: Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Shedd Aquarium in Chicago and two SeaWorld facilities in San Diego, Calif., and San Antonio, Texas.

The whales have been living under the threat of euthanasia since last fall, when Marineland’s request to export them to Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in China was denied by the federal government.

The theme park and zoo was closed to the public in 2024, following the deaths of its owners John Holer and his wife Marie Holer. Since its closure, staff have continued to care for the remaining animals. 

“There is no definite timeline for the rescue,” Johnny Ford, a Shedd Aquarium vice president, said in an email to CBC News, speaking on behalf of the collective of aquariums.

He said the aquariums, all of which are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “are prepared to activate in a matter of weeks.”

Hurdles remain

However, still needed are medical exams of each animal by Canadian veterinarians to ensure they are healthy enough to travel, as well as “the necessary import permits from the U.S. and Spanish governments – a process we are engaged in now,” Ford said. 

Also required is final signoff from the federal government by way of export permits. According to the Fisheries Act, these permits can be given if it’s in the best interest of the whales to leave the country.

That approval “will be issued closer to the date of transport, pending final animal health checks,” Erik Nosaluk from the Office of the Minister of Fisheries said in a statement.

The department says it’s working with Canada Border Services Agency and Health Canada “to ensure all requirements are met for a safe and timely transfer.” 

Spanish aquarium rescued 2 Ukrainian belugas

Oceanogràfic València has been involved “from the beginning” in the Marineland case because of its recent experience successfully moving belugas across borders, Ford said.

In June 2024, the aquarium evacuated two — a 15-year-old male named Plombir and a 14-year-old female named Miranda — from an aquarium in Kharkiv, Ukraine. At the time, bombs were reportedly dropping just hundreds of metres from their tanks. 

WATCH | Whales were evacuated from a warzone:

Two beluga whales evacuated to Spain from Ukrainian warzone

In June 2024 two belugas — a 15-year-old male named Plombir and a 14-year-old female named Miranda — were evacuated from an aquarium in Kharkiv, Ukraine, to one in València, Spain. Before they were rescued, bombs were reportedly dropping just hundreds of metres from their tanks.

Georgia Aquarium and SeaWorld also collaborated on that complex rescue operation, which involved trucking the belugas in small tanks 12 hours across the country to Moldova. From there, the whales were lifted by crane into a six-seater plane and flown to València. 

“Rescue logistics are being diligently planned by a collective with decades of experience safely moving belugas over long distances,” said Ford, noting the Marineland transport “would be no different.”