Marineland and its owner John Holer were involved in many controversies throughout the park's history. Animal rights activists have picketed regularly outside the park property for several years and continue to protest as of 2018.
[79] In 1977, the U.S. Department of Fisheries seized six
bottlenose dolphins that had been illegally caught by John Holer in the
Gulf of Mexico.
[34] In 1983, Niagara Falls mayor
Wayne Thomson resigned amid controversy over a vacation given as a gift by a Toronto development firm and a land purchase made by his then-fiancé Bonnie Dickson. His fiancé bought some land in Niagara Falls from a seller who did not want it to be sold to Marineland. Seven months later, she sold the plot to Marineland. Holer stated she acted as trustee and was accompanied by Thomson.
[80] In the 1980s,
Greenpeace was the first activist group to raise concerns about keeping killer whales in captivity. It objected to the keeping in principle, although it stated that Marineland was one of the better facilities. The level of concern grew in the 1990s. In 1997, a protest was held outside the park by
Ric O'Barry, the trainer of
Flipper of the television series. Other organizations present at the protest included Friends of the Dolphins, Zoocheck Canada and Earth Island Institute. The protesters alleged that Marineland separated mother and child killer whales too quickly and four other whales were stored in unsuitable facilities.
[81]
In September 2011,
SeaWorld won a court battle with Marineland over the fate of
Ikaika, a killer whale. Ikaika had been originally loaned to Marineland under the terms of a breeding loan agreement between the two organizations, but SeaWorld decided to terminate the agreement due to concerns about Ikaika's mental and physical well-being due to deteriorating conditions at the park. Marineland initially refused to return Ikaika, but was eventually ordered to by the
Ontario Superior Courtas well as pay $255,000 in compensation to SeaWorld for legal expenses.
[82] On September 10, 2012, the
Toronto Star published an article quoting former Marineland supervisor Jim Hammond alleging that Marineland owner John Holer had shot one of the baby deer in his park through the windpipe with a 12-gauge shotgun, leaving it to choke on its blood without dying. Hammond claimed the park owner refused his pleas for humane euthanasia.
[83] On December 20, 2012, the
Ontario Ministry of the Environment announced an investigation into several mass animal graves at the park. The ministry had no previous knowledge of the graves, as Marineland lacks permits for such use.
[84]After an investigation by the ministry, Marineland was allowed to continue using a section of the site for animal burials.
[85]
On March 5, 2013, the
Toronto Star published an article quoting Hammond and a local resident alleging that John Holer had shot two Labrador Retrievers that had escaped a neighbour's house and entered Marineland property. The article also mentioned that Hammond was told by Holer "to check if there were any collars ... around their necks and if there were, to remove them."
[86] In September 2013, it was reported that the
Ontario Veterinary College was investigating an unspecified number of veterinarians at Marineland.
[87] Also in 2013, OSPCA investigated the claims of some former employees of Marineland claimed that the animals' health was being put at risk by low water quality. OSPCA used the results of the investigation to make suggestions to the subsequent provincial review of its animal welfare laws.
[88]
In April 2014, the Vancouver newspaper
The Georgia Straight published an article alleging that five harbour seals transferred from the
Vancouver Aquarium had fallen ill at Marineland due to "poor water chemistry". According to the article, one, Pepper, died in 2006 from the conditions while the rest were blind. Marineland filed a CA$600,000lawsuit in July 2014 against
The Georgia Straightand the article's writer for defamation and damages. According to Marineland, Pepper did not die as described in the article and the others were not blind but were in fact generally healthy. It was the eighth lawsuit filed by Marineland since 2012, and the third against a media outlet.
[89] In 2015, the Government of Ontario took up debate of the keeping of orcas.
[90] Bob Barker urged Ontario Premier
Kathleen Wynne to order Marineland to give up Kiska and other animals.
[91] On May 28, 2015, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario passed the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Amendment Act. The act prohibits the possession or breeding of orcas in Ontario but allowed Marineland to keep its orca.
[13][14] On May 10, 2016, Marineland filed a lawsuit against filmmaker Zach Affolter to prevent the release of his documentary,
Black Water. The park alleges that the film contains footage illegally taken at Marineland and is a violation of their policy preventing the use of footage for commercial purposes. Affolter responded by asserting that "
Black Water is meant as an educational, non-commercial film that dives into the moral question behind keeping cetaceans in captivity."
[92]Marineland demanded CA$1 million in damages for breach of its intellectual property rights. Affolter denied the allegations and said he had found the video of Kiska on
Facebook. Until the lawsuit was resolved, the film's release was on hold.
[93]
why
