The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry

doi:10.3390/su2103142

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Sustainability 2010, 2(10), 3142-3157; doi:10.3390/su2103142

Article

The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry

John McCollough* and Henry F. Check Jr.

Department of Business and Economics, The Pennsylvania State University-Lehigh Valley, 2809 Saucon Valley Rd., Center Valley, PA 18034, USA

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 16 August 2010; in revised form: 22 September 2010 / Accepted: 26 September 2010 / Published: 30 September 2010

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Abstract: This paper presents empirical evidence which indicates that the introduction of petroleum based products on the American markets was a significant factor in reducing the demand for whale oil. As a result, the whaling industry, America’s 5th largest industry at the time, soon collapsed. A counterfactual study is then presented which suggests that if the introduction of petroleum based products had been delayed, then the increase in demand as a result of rising GDP per capita, as well as rapid industrialization, would have given whalers incentive to continue chasing after a diminishing whale population. This could have resulted in the baleen whale population being subject to unsustainable harvest levels.

Keywords: sustainable yield; whaling; sperm whales; baleen whales

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MDPI and ACS Style

McCollough, J.; Check, H.F., Jr. The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry. Sustainability 2010, 2, 3142-3157.

AMA Style

McCollough J, Check HF, Jr. The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry. Sustainability. 2010; 2(10):3142-3157.

Chicago/Turabian Style

McCollough, John; Check, Henry F., Jr. 2010. "The Baleen Whales’ Saving Grace: The Introduction of Petroleum Based Products in the Market and Its Impact on the Whaling Industry." Sustainability 2, no. 10: 3142-3157.

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