Sea Shepherd honours Steve Irwin

December 05, 2007 12:00pm
A SHIP used for ocean conservation has been renamed in honour of the late Steve Irwin and set sail today for the Southern Ocean to protect endangered whales.

The vessel, which was formerly named after conservationist Robert Hunter, has been used to campaign against whaling by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society for the past three decades.

At noon today the Steve Irwin is scheduled to depart Melbourne, bound for a protected area of the Southern Ocean where conservationists believe Japanese ships are illegally fishing for endangered humpback and fin whales.

Irwin, who was renowned for his conservation work, had been investigating joining the Sea Shepherd on part of its journey shortly before he died from a stingray attack in 2006.

“Steve Irwin's life demonstrated how one person can make a significant difference in the world," said founder and president of Sea Shepherd, captain Paul Watson.

"Steve wanted to come to Antarctica with us to defend the whales and now he will be joining us in spirit with his name emblazoned on the fastest and most powerful whale protection ship in the world."

Speaking on his behalf, Irwin's wife Terri said: "Steve would have been extremely honoured to be acknowledged in this way as he shared Sea Shepherd’s passion for saving whales".

This is the second boat to bear Irwin's name. In June this year Australia Zoo launched Steve’s Whale One, a whale-watching excursion boat used for daily whale-watching cruises off the coast of Queensland.