Image by Rachael Merrett.
As the oceans become quieter amidst the global pandemic, an application for seismic surveys off the West Coast of Vancouver Island threatens the recovery of endangered Southern Resident killer whales. This week, in response, a coalition of conservation groups has written to the federal minister of Fisheries and Oceans to inform her that approval of the application would be illegal under the Species at Risk Act.
Recently, the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University requested a permit under the federal Species at Risk Act to conduct geophysical surveys in the habitat of the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales. The seismic survey will produce high-intensity sound from an array of towed air guns through Southern Resident habitat, including areas designated as critical habitat. With only 72 remaining, the Southern Resident Killer whales are endangered under the Species at Risk Act. In May 2018, the government announced these whales face imminent threats to their survival and recovery.
