ACS Conservation Committee Report

ACS Conservation Reports are selected summaries of current news articles on whales, dolphins, porpoises, and their environment. These reports are offered to you under the fair use provisions of U.S. copyright law.

 Plan for Luna with L-pod Finally Approved...  Canadian and U.S. agencies announced plans in late March for getting the lone orca, Luna, a member of the Southern Resident community in Puget Sound, out of Nootka Sound, where he has been coming close to boats and float planes since separating from his pod in 2001.

If L-pod swims close to Nootka Sound, on the west side of Vancouver Island, this spring, biologists will try to lead Luna to it. If that fails, they'll capture Luna and move him to the San Juan Islands this summer or fall, when killer whales are in Washington waters.

The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service and Fisheries and Oceans Canada have each pledged $100,000 toward the effort.

Although it would be ideal to reunite Luna with his original pod, any of the pods would likely accept him, biologists say.

The U.S. and Canadian fisheries agencies worked together in summer 2002 to move another young orca, a 2-year-old female called Springer back to Canadian waters from busy Puget Sound, where she'd wandered after her mother died. That effort was counted as a success when Springer returned to Canada's inland waters with her family last summer.

Just a week before this decision, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission added killer whales to the state list of endangered species. Commissioners hope the step will lead to a federal listing for Puget Sound orcas under the Endangered Species Act.     Associated Press

 Washington State Lists Puget Sound Orca as Endangered ...  Hoping to send a message to the federal government, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife Commission has added the region's killer whales to Washington state's list of endangered species.

In early April, the commission voted unanimously to approve the listing, while the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) weighs whether to grant the orcas federal endangered status. Covering the killer whales under the federal Endangered Species Act would likely mean significant policy changes ranging from waterfront construction to cruise-ship operations.

"It's critical that the federal government looks into this and that they don't just blow it off," said Russ Cahill, a Fish and Wildlife commissioner. "This is the major flag that waves over the Puget Sound as far as I'm concerned."

Two years ago, the NMFS decided not to list the whales as endangered. But in December, U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik ruled that the agency had ignored available science when it made that call, and observers remain hopeful that NMFS will add Puget Sound orcas to the endangered list this year. The state decision was made after the commission discovered the local orca population has declined 18 percent since 1995, according to a department report. Several possible factors were cited, including declining salmon populations, increased pollution and harassment by marine vehicles.

Three social groups make up the region's resident orca population: the J, K and L pods. Cahill said he was particularly concerned with the L pod, which has only one breeding male.

The Canadian government has already declared the region's killer whales endangered.

While the Washington state listing doesn't carry the weight of a federal endangered-species listing, the state can assist with recovery efforts indirectly.

"This may be a step toward some significant changes," said David Bain, an affiliate assistant professor of psychology at the University of Washington who has been researching local whales for 25 years. "One of the reasons killer whales have been troubled is that food supply has been depleted. The state has a major role to play in salmon."

For instance, the state could close certain areas to sport fishing, or make it more difficult to get development permits in sensitive areas, Bain said. Tightening state regulations to prevent oil spills would also protect the orcas, he said. At a minimum, the state could provide more research funding.

But "listing under the federal Endangered Species Act would be much more significant," Bain said. "The fact that Washington state and Canadian government has already listed increases the chances that will happen."     Seattle Times

 Japanese Whaling Fleet Kills 440 Minke Whales...  Japan's research whaling fleet has returned to port at the end of March after killing a self-imposed quota of 440 minke whales in Antarctic waters, officials said.

Japan continues to cite the "research mission" of the whale hunt. "This mission was designed to gather data such as eating habits of whale populations," the agency official said, adding that the whale meat would be sold in Japan "in line with international rules".

No anti-whaling protests greeted the boats at the two ports yesterday. A spokeswoman for environmental group Greenpeace said that no rallies or statements were planned to oppose their return.

Japan argues that the research backs up its claims that whale populations are thriving, and provides data showing whales are consuming valuable fish stocks. Opponents argue it is just commercial whaling in disguise.

Japan kills about 700 large whales a year in the name of research, including animals taken on a summer whaling voyage to the North Pacific which is doubly controversial as endangered sei whales have been part of the quota.

The meat from the research cull - about 2000 tons annually, according to environmental groups - ends up in supermarkets and restaurants across Japan, a practice defended on the grounds it finances future whaling missions.

According to the whaling commission's rules, research whale meat must be processed and sold, a fishery ministry official said.     Sidney Morning Herald

 Japanese Supermarket Tesco Facing Whale Meat Boycott ...   Supermarket giant Tesco faces a consumer backlash over its refusal to stop selling whale meat in its stores in Japan. The UK group has been selling the minke meat in 32 of a chain of 78 convenience stores it bought last year.

Now, Greenpeace and the Environment Investigation Agency (EIA) have launched a campaign to make UK customers aware of Tesco's stance - and want to persuade the firm to ban whale meat from its shops.

An EIA spokesman said: "If Tesco does not respond to stop the sale of whale-meat products, then we would seriously consider calling on the public to show their disgust by boycotting UK stores."

But Jonathan Church, Tesco's external communications director, said: "Whale meat is on sale at a number of our C Two-Network convenience stores and we have no plans to remove it."

"We believe it would be wrong to impose our Western values on Japanese customers against their wishes. And Japan has a culture of eating whale meat."

Japan kills up to 3,000 minke whales a year for 'research'. The whale meat sold by the Tesco-owned stores comes from companies that own shares in the fleets used for 'scientific whaling research'.

Environmental investigators believe some of the whale meat sold by the Tesco stores may actually come from dolphins and porpoises. What raises most concern among campaigners is the method of hunting. Even using a modern harpoon it can take 90 minutes to kill a whale.     Associated New Media

 International NGO's welcome Japan's Draft Guidelines To Boost Development Aid Transparency...   After reviewing the official development assistance charter, the basis of Japan's foreign aid to developing countries, the Foreign Ministry has compiled draft guidelines to boost transparency of the country's development aid and to prevent corruption. The Eastern Caribbean Coalition for Environmental Awareness ECCEA and a sister organization, the Swiss Coalition for the Protection of Whales SCPW (ASMS OceanCare and Zürcher Tierschutz), welcome these draft guidelines which include basic ideas and standards for selecting contractors and conducting assessment of projects during and after their implementation.

By boosting transparency, the government hopes to prevent fraud and corruption and to convince the international community that Japan's official development assistance (ODA) is fair.

The guidelines respond to calls by non governmental organizations, among them ECCEA and SCPW which called on the Government of Japan to review its overseas aid program in an October 2002 publication evaluating Japan's fisheries aid program in the East Caribbean. Authored by one of the region's leading economists, the report shows that the Japanese aid program does not address areas of real need, but is a means of exercising power on the voting behavior of small island states at international associations, such as the International Whaling Commission and various fisheries conferences.

While it is generally recognized, in Japan and other donor countries, that aid should be provided to meet the needs of local residents, unfortunately there are increasing cases in which Japanese aid is making life more difficult rather than easier for the citizens of developing countries and causing environmental destruction. This is because ODA projects are being implemented based on policy decisions that do not take into consideration the needs of local residents. Japanese aid is concentrated on a single sector, fisheries: 22 fisheries complexes either financed or promised to these islands since 1986. The effects of such massive Japanese aid should result in spectacular development of the local fishing industry. To the contrary it is seen that results are far from expectations. Japanese officials have acknowledged the links between Japan's fisheries aid policy and the support Japan expects in return for such aid; the recipient must sign a fishing agreement with Japan and, through its representatives to international organizations, support Japan's stance favoring the commercial exploitation of marine biodiversity.

Records show that this initiative was first launched by Japan at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) then at CITES, corresponding in each case to a time frame and a first transfer of aid from Japan to the country in question. In many cases island support for Japan's agenda represents a radical departure from national policies, providing Japan with a blocking minority at the negotiating table.

The ultimate recommendation is to develop socio-economic programs that are truly tailored to the needs of these islands and that would allow for independent decision-making. Such a strategy is well within the remit of European and other international funding agencies around the world.

The draft guidelines partially meet the ECCEA and SCPW recommendations, calling on embassy staff in a recipient country to advise contractors to include the recipient's needs in aid projects and to take environmental and social factors into consideration, as well as assessing the projects during and after their implementation. The guidelines will be finalized by Tokyo following public consultation.

It is hoped that such guidelines will foster normalization of procedures at international commissions and UN conventions, and will be seriously implemented by Japan and similar funding agencies.     Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

 Alaskan Governor Will Open State Waters to Oil Drilling...   Citing frustration with what he calls "America's extreme environmental community," Gov. Frank Murkowski said in late March he will open state waters offshore of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to oil wells.

Gov. Murkowski says he is "not burdened by" the process in the U.S. Congress of attempting to pass legislation to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The oil and gas lease sales are planned for October. State waters extend out three miles in the Arctic Ocean and Beaufort Sea.

It is unclear how much of the area will be leased, but the two areas amount to about 1.2 million acres. About 670,000 acres of submerged lands lie off the coast of NPR-A and 350,000 acres are off the coast of ANWR.

In addition, environmental risks associated with offshore drilling could force opposition groups to soften their intractable position against drilling in ANWR, Murkowski said.

"It seems like a kind of foolish attempt at brinksmanship on the part of Governor Murkowski," said Matthew Niemerski, spokesman for Defenders of Wildlife.

Some areas offshore of NPR-A have been leased and are producing oil, Murkowski said. These include the Northstar, Point McIntyre and Endicott fields.

The lease sales could affect areas set aside by the state to protect whales, which are still hunted by Alaska Natives.

The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission has complained that hunters must go as far as 15 miles further out to sea to find whales as a result of shipping activity and seismic work associated with oil exploration, said state Sen. Donny Olson, D-Nome, whose district spans the federal areas. "This obviously puts whalers and their crews in more danger," Olson said.

Murkowski said he is sensitive to concerns of potential harm caused to Alaska Native subsistence whaling and is willing to mitigate impact on whales. Murkowski said he ordered Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin to work with North Slope communities.

But the lease sales raise other problems for exploration companies that could not ship their oil overland through the two federal areas, said oil consultant Ken Boyd.     Associated Press

 Cook Inlet Beluga Decision ...   The Assistant Administrator for NMFS finds that the recovery of Cook Inlet beluga whales can occur while allowing a small take by Alaska Natives. The decision is based on scientific research on this population of beluga whales, the record of hearing, Judge McKenna's recommended decision, comments from the general public, and the final EIS. For purposes of interim harvest for 2001-2004, the record indicates the interim harvest of six whales in four years would not significantly disadvantage CI beluga whales. To insure the recovery of this beluga stock, NMFS will continue to monitor and assess the status of Cook InIet beluga whales.    Federal Register (for an in-depth report, please see 2004 Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Plan

 Oil Spill In Massachusetts...   The owners of a barge that leaked tens of thousands of gallons of oil along the Massachusetts coast will plead guilty to two criminal charges and pay a $10 million fine under a plea agreement announced in early April. The settlement is believed to be the largest environmental penalty in the state's history.

Bouchard Transportation Co. of Hicksville, N.Y., reached the agreement in the criminal investigation of the April 2003 spill that killed 450 birds, shut down thousands of acres of shellfish beds and affected nearly 90 miles of Massachusetts's coastline.

The tugboat Evening Tide, owned and operated by Bouchard, was towing a barge loaded with more than 4 million gallons of a thick fuel oil.

Bouchard agreed to plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, said U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan.

The company has already accepted responsibility for the cleanup costs and paid more than $38 million for the effort, a figure that is expected to rise as scientists learn more about the long-term damage to wildlife.     Associated Press

 CITES Reviews Canada and Greenland's Narwhal Hunts and Tusk Trade ...   At the 20th meeting of the Animals Committee of CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the first week of April, Canada and Greenland's hunting of narwhals, and their trade in tusks and teeth, came under scrutiny.

Background:

Through a mechanism called the 'Review of Significant Trade' (RST), CITES reviews biological, trade and other relevant information on Appendix-II species that are subject to significant levels of trade. The objective is to identify problems and solutions concerning the implementation of Article IV (the requirement that a finding of 'no detriment' is made before an export permit is issued). If problems are identified, the Animals Committee makes Primary and Secondary Recommendations to the range states. If these Recommendations are complied with, the species may be removed from the process. However, if the range states do not adequately implement the Recommendations, the Secretariat and Chair of Animals Committee will recommend appropriate action to the Standing Committee, which may include, as a last resort, a suspension of trade in that species.

The Narwhal underwent a Review of Significant Trade in 1995. Animals Committee expressed concern about the species and made three recommendations, which included the initiation of new surveys against which the sustainability of hunting and trade could be assessed. Relying on population information dating back to 1979, Greenland and Canada complied with the first two recommendations. However, they never responded to the third Recommendation.

Canada and Greenland have actually undertaken new surveys in recent years, but the results dramatically undermine previous understanding of narwhal stock structure and cast serious doubt on the sustainability of hunts, particularly in Greenland. There is, in fact, no shared 'Baffin Bay stock' of narwhals as previously believed, but probably five stocks in East Canada and two in West Greenland. The new survey data show that the West Greenland stocks are far smaller than previously believed, already seriously depleted and subject to multiple hunting on their migratory routes. It is impossible that Greenland's current average removal of 662 narwhals a year from these stocks is sustainable. Even the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO) recently expressed 'grave concern' about these animals, for which no quota is even set, and recommended that no more than 135 narwhals a year are permitted to be taken in West Greenland.

The Animals Committee concluded that Greenland and Canada's failure to respond to the recommendation meant that the narwhal was still officially 'under review', and set a new deadline of July 31st for compliance. Their responses (which, to be adequate, will have to include all the new survey data) will be considered by the Secretariat and Chair. If they are not satisfied with the response, they will make recommendations for appropriate action to the Standing Committee, which meets in October.

Both Canada and Greenland sent representatives to the CITES meeting who argued against the ruling (claiming that they needed more time and noting capacity and communication problems). However, both the Secretariat and delegates expressed impatience and disappointment that a Recommendation, which was supposed to have been implemented within 6 months, had still not been implemented nine years later.

The outcome of the Animals Committee meeting is good news for the narwhale and it will be interesting to hear Canada and Greenland's responses shortly. The new survey data help show that hunting in Greenland is unsustainable and that non-detriment findings made in support of tusk and teeth exports are unfounded.     WDCS

 Rare Right Whales Seen for 1st Time in Decades in the Gulf of Mexico...   A rare sighting of right whales in the Gulf of Mexico has been confirmed for the first time in more than 20 years, scientists say. With only 300 or so animals remaining, right whales are considered the world's most endangered whales.

A University of Florida student who was home for Easter weekend photographed two whales about a mile and a half off this Florida Panhandle resort city while fishing. "One was about twice as big as the other," Chris Cramer said. "They were moving at a good clip, too."

Cramer provided the photographs to The News Herald of Panama City, which forwarded them to Pete Sheridan, director of the National Marine Fisheries Service laboratory here. They then were sent to whale experts inside and outside the agency, who recognized the animals as right whales, probably a female and her calf.

The sighting prompted the National Marine Fisheries Service to issue a notice to the boating public to be on the lookout for the whales and to report any sightings.

The whales did not appear to be in distress and seemed to be heading southeast, Cramer said. A day after his encounter, a friend spotted a pair of whales 35 miles offshore but did not have camera, so it was unclear they were the same two, he said. Mase said a whale sighting also has been reported in Pensacola Bay, about 100 miles west of here recently.

The last right whale sighting in the gulf was during the 1970s, and there have been only a half-dozen since the 1950s, said Amy Knowlton, a research scientist in Boston with the New England Aquarium's North Atlantic Right Whale Research Project.

Female right whales travel to southern waters in winter and deliver calves there, but they typically remain in the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida and Georgia coasts. They generally start to head back north in mid-to-late March.

Knowlton said a team of observers monitoring right whales off Florida and Georgia wrapped up its work in late March, believing the last of the animals had started the return trip north.

She was unsure what might have led the whales into the gulf because it is difficult to find the small crustaceans they feed on there. It might be a sign of trouble, she said.     The News Herald