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March 10, 2020

Watch: Why each whale is worth more than $2 million

BY: Oceana

Shutterstock/Chase Dekker

 

There are plenty of good reasons to protect whales for their intrinsic value. The fact that these majestic animals also provide benefits to the environment and to the economy – especially in the form of carbon offsets – is just a bonus. As climate change wreaks havoc on the planet, whales are a bright spot in the sea. They sequester massive amounts of carbon dioxide and also contribute to the health of phytoplankton, another species with significant carbon-capturing capabilities.

“When it comes to saving the planet, one whale is worth thousands of trees,” the authors of a new International Monetary Fund paper wrote. Watch the video above to see how economists calculated that a whale is worth more than $2 million, and learn more about what you can do to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales here