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

BREAKING: Vessels are travelling too fast through important right whale habitat. In 2020, two-thirds of vessels in the Cabot Strait did not comply with Transport Canada’s voluntary slowdown and exceeded the 10-knot limit. The Cabot Strait slowdown must be mandatory. The time to act is now.

At least 32 North Atlantic right whales have died between 2017 and 2020, 21 of them in busy Canadian waters. Of the ten right whales for which a cause of death could be determined, eight were due to vessel strikes.

Only around 360 right whales remain and, tragically, deaths are outpacing births. Without urgent action, this could be the first large whale species to go extinct in the Atlantic Ocean in centuries.
Entanglements in fishing gear and collisions with vessels are the leading causes of death – both of which are preventable.

The Canadian and U.S. governments must stand united in efforts 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 400 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 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:

●	Enact mandatory seasonal speed restrictions in areas where right whales are known to frequent and implement mandatory short-term restrictions in additional areas when they are detected.
●	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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