Heroes' Star Hayden Panettiere Takes Her Save the Whales Again! Campaign on the Road in Japan

TOKYO, March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 29th, 2007, Hayden Panettiere, spokesperson for the Save the Whales Again! Campaign (www.TakePart.com/SaveTheWhalesAgain), created an international media frenzy when she and 5 other surfers paddled out into the blood filled waters of Taiji, Japan's notorious dolphin killing cove in a peaceful protest that became violent when the fisherman attacked them with spinning propellers and poles.

(Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100326/LA77212)

The moment was captured in the feature documentary "The Cove," which just won the Oscar.  While the surfing incident and the film have generated intense international interest, few within Japan are aware of the full extent of what's happening in Taiji and other small villages along the coast.

Hayden is returning there with the intention of opening communication channels between activists and the Japanese people.  In particular, she'll be drawing attention to the hunts and raising awareness to the fact that dolphin meat is highly contaminated with mercury and other toxins and is unsafe for human consumption.

Human activities and industrialization have polluted the ocean food chain from the bottom up and several species of dolphins and whales are at the top of the ocean's food chain and have the dubious distinction of being the most contaminated animals on the planet.

Several studies have shown, including studies done by Japanese scientists, that dolphin and porpoise meat is contaminated with mercury, PCBs, DDT, and other contaminates at levels that are unsafe for human consumption.

Several Taiji residents who regularly eat dolphin and whale meat have been tested for mercury contamination and levels have been found as high as 67.2 parts-per- million (ppm), according to a study by Tetsuya Endo, an associate professor at Health Services University of Hokkaido. The health standard for mercury in Japan is .3-.4 ppm. Overall, the levels of mercury found in the 50 Taiji residents he tested were about 10 times higher than the average in Japan.

Hayden will be in Taiji on Friday, March 26, 2010, from 10am – 5pm, and she has asked to meet with Taiji's Mayor, City Councilman, and Fisheries Union representatives.  Hayden will also be visiting the Taiji whale museum and captive dolphinarium and will be available to the press while in Taiji.

On Saturday, March 27, 2010, Hayden will be in Osaka from 11am – 2pm at Tsurumi Ryokuchi Koen Park taking part in a public event and will be available to the press there as well.

Save the Whales Again! is a campaign of The Whaleman Foundation. The Whaleman Foundation is an oceanic research, conservation and production organization dedicated to preserving and protecting dolphins, whales, and their ocean habitat.

For more information go to TakePart.com/SaveTheWhalesAgain.

SOURCE Save the Whales Again!