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 U.S. environmental officers have said that moving the whales to
the United States would hasten the depletion of the wild beluga
whale population and violate the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
The Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, which is suing the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fisheries service, says that
its efforts will help the beluga whales.
Also known as white whales, belugas normally swim in Arctic or
sub-Arctic waters and are classified as endangered in some areas and
as "near threatened" worldwide, according to the Georgia Aquarium.
Aquarium lawyers told the U.S. district court in Atlanta that marine
biologists will study the whales, and their public display will
promote public education and conservation efforts.
 The aquarium sued the government in September 2013 for the right to
acquire the whales, which were captured in 2006 off the coast of
northern Russia in the Sea of Okhotsk and are currently in the care
of Russian scientists.
This will be the second time the case has appeared before U.S.
District Judge Amy Totenberg, who last August heard arguments when
the aquarium sought access to internal government documents that led
up to the denial of its permit.
Up until March 2013, the project seemed to have been given the green
light from NOAA, according to court documents filed by the aquarium.
The judge has not yet issued a ruling.
If the aquarium, which already has three belugas, succeeds in
bringing the whales to the United States, some would remain in
Atlanta on display and the others would go to marine facilities
across the country including SeaWorld parks and other aquariums, the
permit application said.
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SeaWorld has come under scrutiny for its killer whale shows.
Scott Higley, a spokesperson for Georgia Aquarium said "the decision
will be based on what is best for the collective beluga population
in accredited facilities in North America. They will only go to
accredited facilities that already care for belugas."
Two baby beluga whales born at the aquarium have died since 2012,
although their deaths have not been raised as an issue in the case.
If the permit is denied, the whales' fate would remain in the hands
of Russia. No final court decision is expected for several months.
(Editing by Letitia Stein and Sandra Maler)
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