TELL U.S. AND CANADIAN GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TO PROTECT NORTH ATLANTIC RIGHT WHALES

Earlier this year a critically endangered North Atlantic right whale calf was found dead due to two fatal vessel strikes. Add your name now to call for urgent North Atlantic right whale protections.

Critically endangered North Atlantic right whales are on the verge of extinction, and 9% of the population has died in just the past four years. Only around 360 North Atlantic right whales remain. Without aggressive action now, this could be the first large whale to go extinct in the Atlantic Ocean in centuries.

Collisions with vessels and entanglements in fishing gear are the leading causes of death – both of which are preventable.

We’re calling on the U.S. and Canadian governments to take urgent action to protect North Atlantic right whales from collisions with vessels and entanglements in fishing gear.

Tell your federal government officials to take immediate action to protect North Atlantic right whales from extinction. Speak up now, before these iconic whales are gone forever.

Admiral

Karl

Schultz

U.S. Coast Guard

Mr.

Chris

Oliver

NOAA Fisheries

Ms.

Bernadette

Jordan

Department of Fisheries and Oceans

Minister

Omar

Alghabra

Ministry of Transport

Dear Canadian and U.S. Government Officials,

North Atlantic right whales are one of the most endangered whales in the world, with only around 360 individuals left. Since 2017, a staggering 34 right whales have died in U.S. and Canadian waters. Earlier this year, one calf was tragically found dead off the coast of Florida where it was struck by a vessel, leaving it with propeller wounds, broken ribs, and a fractured skull.

Fortunately, we know what the problem is. The two greatest threats to North Atlantic right whales are vessel collisions and entanglements in fishing gear. In 2019, researchers looked at the causes of 70 North Atlantic right whale deaths recorded between 2003 and 2018 in the U.S. and Canada. Where the cause of death could be determined, nearly 90% died as a direct result of fishing gear entanglements or ship strikes. Nearly 86% of North Atlantic right whales have been entangled in fishing gear at least once in their lives.

The U.S. and Canadian governments must save these whales. As the heads of the agencies and departments tasked with protecting endangered ocean wildlife and overseeing shipping and fishing, you have a legal and moral responsibility to act swiftly. Both countries already have the tools needed to change the trajectory of these whales from extinction to recovery.

That’s why I am standing with Oceana to call on you to take the following actions as soon as possible to protect North Atlantic right whales:

● Reduce the amount of vertical lines used in fixed-gear fisheries in U.S. and Canadian Atlantic waters.

● Implement effective dynamic, real time fisheries closures that remove threats to right whales when they are present.

● Modify fishing gear and practices to reduce the likelihood and severity of entanglements through the development of ropeless gear.

● Expand fisheries transparency and monitoring by requiring public tracking of fishing vessels

● Fund the development and use of a new technologies identify the presence of right whales (acoustics, satellite, infra-red cameras, etc.)

● Provide long-term funding and capacity building for research, monitoring and risk reduction.

● Expand and strengthen response networks comprising researchers, environmental organizations, industry groups and stakeholders, and government decision-makers to help manage the crisis and start rebuilding the population.

Please stand up for North Atlantic right whales. Time is running out, and their survival depends on you.

Sincerely,

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