Last week Oma Tafua called a meeting with relevant stakeholders in Niue to finalise Niue's Whale Watching Regulations. Responses were both great and negative - given Oma Tafua's mandate for not only protecting an endangered resource but culturally celebrating a species that are a part of our unique heritage. Oceania Humpback Whales that are Niue's primary target for their whale watching industry are: ENDANGERED, their protection is paramount given the development of Niue's whale watching industry. Issues raised included allowing 2 vessels at any one time to allow "swimming with interactions" with a group of whales (pod); keeping a distance from moms and calves; and prohibiting those persons that swim out to whales from the shore without any guidance from trained whale watching operators as with dinghys/tenders approaching whales from their yachts while in Niue waters. Niue is only 1 of 3 countries that allow swimming with whales/dolphins. An amazing thing about Niue is that land based sightings are - PHENOMENAL. To compare - for legal purposes you would have to go out nautical miles of the Australian coast to whale watch. Niue is a treasure for whale watching that you don't have to necessarily go out on a boat - how awesome is that! Oma Tafua will be maintaining close contact with Crown Law especially in regard to final whale watching regulations. We acknowledge Niue as a leader in marine mammal conservation in the Region and we would like to see that Niue provides excellent whale watching standards for Niue's whale watching industry. Guidelines for operators in in the Regulations are only serve to enhance the experience of whale watching in Niue making it viable long term for Niue and also allowing the benefits to stay with Licenced Niuean whale watching operators. Safety for the swimmers/boat operators and protection for the resource :)