The Orlando, Florida company SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. plans to build new, larger environments for its killer whales, providing them more roomy and stimulating accomodations. It will also provide funding for additional research on the sea mammals, along with other programs to protect ocean health and whales in the wild, according to the Associated Press.
The first renovations will occur at the San Diego park and open to the public in 2018. Similar changes will then come to the Orlando and San Antonio locations.
SeaWorld will build a tank filled with 10 million gallons of water, almost twice the size of the current tank. The new environment will be called the Blue World Project. It will include more stimulating features like a "fast water current" that allows the whales to swim against moving water.
SeaWorld also pledged $10 million to support research focused on threats to killer whales in the wild and a multimillion-dollar partnership focused on ocean health, according to the AP.
The theme park has endured countless criticism over the last year due to the 2013 documentary "Blackfish." The film focused on the captivity of Tilikum, an orca (now housed at the Orlando location) involved in three individual deaths, and the consequences of keeping killer whales in captivity.
The company said renovations had been in the works for some time and were not a response to the documentary or the backlash from animal activists and the movie's viewers. Jim Atchison, CEO of SeaWorld, also acknowledged the renovations wouldn't satisfy everyone, according to The Wall Street Journal.
"Unfortunately there are some people who want nothing more than to see the end to the relationship between humans and animals, and that would be a sad outcome," Atchison said.
More than 10 performers cancelled concerts at SeaWorld in the last year and Southwest Airlines will soon end its corporate partnership with the company. SeaWorld also reported "disappointing" second-quarter financial results on Wednesday, according to the AP.
