The *Flemish government has ruled that the dolphinarium at Boudewijn Seapark in Bruges, Belgium which has been the subject of debate for many years, must close by 2037. The facility currently displays six captive dolphins and is the last of its kind in Belgium, unsurprisingly the park’s management has vowed to challenge the decision, arguing that this breaches prior agreements to create an outdoor pool by 2027, with a new evaluation that would take place in 2037.
*Flemish minister for Animal Welfare, Ben Weyts has said that in 2037 the outdoor pool will be completely written off as the operators will then have recovered their investment. Boudewijn Seapark is owned by Aspro Parks (Aspro Ocio Group), a Spanish leisure corporation that operates many water /amusement parks, aquariums, zoos and dolphinariums across Europe. The question now is what will happen to the dolphins as the closure could happen much sooner, Dolphinaria-Free Europe is investigating further.
*The federal state of Flanders has its own legislative and executive powers and is the autonomous northern region of Belgium