A California commission was overreaching when it banned the breeding of captive killer whales at a $100 million planned exhibit at San Diego’s SeaWorld, the park claimed in a lawsuit.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday in San Diego County Superior Court asserts that the park’s treatment of its whales is subject to federal law and not the decisions of the California Coastal Commission, which must approve major new building developments in coastal cities.
The commission endorsed the orca tank expansion known as “Blue World,” but, in a surprising and serious blow to the park, included a ban on breeding at the planned facility and prohibitions on the sale, trade or transfer of the whales.
A Coastal Commission spokeswoman said the agency couldn’t comment on the particulars of the lawsuit, but the commission said that it “stands by its decision in October to protect killer whales.”
