Hi All,
I wanted to update interested parties on a recent unprecedented legal action taken by a small local government in Washington State, U.S.A., to help protect the endangered population of Southern Resident Killer Whales from irresponsible boaters.
I work as the Director of The Whale Museum's Soundwatch Boater Education Program located in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island in Washington State. Soundwatch has been working since 1993 to help reduce disturbances to whales and other marine wildlife through the development, distribution, and implementation of best practice guidelines and to annually characterize vessel activity trends for area marine management agencies. Soundwatch has worked with many partners to create the regional Be Whale Wise Guidelines for Boaters, Paddlers and Viewers that are used throughout Washington State and British Columbia, Canada.
The Southern Resident Killer Whale population was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act by the National Marine Fisheries Service in 2005. In 2006 the National Marine Fisheries Service designated Critical Habitat Areas for this population with the Summer Core Habitat centering on the waters located in and around San Juan County. Recognizing that large numbers of commercial and recreational vessels frequent the waters of San Juan County, and that one of the listed threats to this population are effects from vessel traffic, the San Juan County Council was presented with a proposal from several local NGO's to create a local ordinance to help protect the whales from vessel traffic occurring in the county. After considerable public testimony, written statements and reports from local NGO's and business groups such as Soundwatch, Friends of the San Juans, Orca Relief, the Whale Watch Operators Association Northwest as well as governmental agencies including NOAA fisheries, the United States Coast Guard, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the San Juan Marine Resources Committee, the San Juan County Sheriff and the San Juan County Prosecuting Attorney, the San Juan County Council signed into effect on September 11, 2007 "An Ordinance Regulating The Operation of Vessels in Proximity to the Southern Resident Killer Whales, an Endangered Species,and Establishing Penalties for the Violation Thereof" based on the current Be Whale Wise Guidelines for boaters.
View the San Juan County Orca Ordinance: http://www.whale-museum.org/museum/press/latest/San%20Juan%20County%20ORCA%2...
View the Be Whale Wise Guidelines: http://www.whale-museum.org/downloads/soundwatch/2006BWWPoster.pdf
For further information on this process or the ordinance, you can direct questions to soundwatch@whalemuseum.org and I can help and/or direct you to the right folks.
Regards, Kari Koski Soundwatch Director
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Kari Koski, Soundwatch Director soundwatch@whalemuseum.org The Whale Museum P.O. Box 945 Friday Harbor, WA 98250 360-378-4710 Box 33 360-317-4339 Cell 360-378-5790 Fax www.whalemuseum.org Be Whale Wise!