Since 2021, Marine Connection has been monitoring any possible move of eight captive dolphins from Dolfinarium Harderwijk in the Netherlands to a facility in China. Due to concerns over the ongoing welfare and care of the marine mammals if they are to be relocated to Hainan Ocean Paradise in China, Dutch Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Piet Adema, recently blocked the sale of the dolphins, requesting further information from Dolfinarium Harderwijk about the facility in China. The Minister has said before any move will be considered, the Chinese facility must be in line with the standards that the dolphins currently have at Harderwijk. Based on the information that Harderwijk has supplied so far, Mr Adema is not convinced they would be and until then, the animals cannot be moved.
In 2015, inspectors from the ministry visited Dolfinarium Harderwijk. Questions were raised about the performances the animals were trained to participate in, the tanks they lived in, and their interaction with the public, particularly photo opportunities with the dolphins. Dolfinarium Harderwijk has over 20 dolphins, most captive-bred at the facility.
