Right Whale

NOAA, USCG Provide Commercial Mariners with Guide to Right Whale Protection

The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Service and the U.S. Coast Guard announce the availability of "A Prudent Mariner's Guide to Right Whale Protection" - an interactive, multi-media CD program that serves as a guide and voluntary training resource for commercial mariners operating in right whale habitats along the U.S. Atlantic coast. The CD, distributed free-of-charge upon request, provides a comprehensive collection of right whale information delivered in a compact and user-friendly format. The program includes: crew training information about right whales, recommended navigational actions when operating in right whale habitat, a guide to reporting sightings of dead or injured right whales, an informative video presentation, and a short follow-up quiz. It also provides guidelines for compliance with the Mandatory Ship Reporting Systems, including an innovative, interactive report generation program, as well as key supplementary information contained in a separate "Media" folder, such as video clips, information about the current Mandatory Ship Reporting areas, and diagrams of the recently implemented, recommended traffic lanes in right whale high-use areas. NOAA Fisheries, in collaboration with the Coast Guard and a number of other partners, developed the CD program and is currently targeting shipping companies and vessel operators who plan to ensure the CDs are delivered directly to vessels and included in bridge management training

Changes in Vessel Operations Protects Whales

Years of study and effort by NOAA and the U.S. Coast Guard will pay off this summer when two changes to shipping lanes into Boston are implemented. Both changes significantly reduce the risk of collisions between large ships and whales. Beginning on June 1, ships 300 gross tons and above will be asked to avoid an area in the Great South Channel from April through July, when right whales face the highest chance of being struck by ships

Court Strikes New Balance for Navy, Whales

The U.S. Navy can go ahead with training exercises this month using sonar off the California coast but should afterward implement new guidelines to protect whales, a U.S. appeals court said, according to a Reuters report. For years, U.S. courts have weighed the rights of whales to live undisturbed versus U.S. national security needs. The order of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was the latest effort to strike the right balance.

North Atlantic Right Whale – port access routing study

The U.S. Coast Guard is conducting a port access routing study to analyze potential vessel routing measures and consider adjusting existing vessel routing measures in order to reduce vessel strikes on the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale. The areas under consideration include Cape Cod Bay and possibly Race Point and the Great South Channel in the northern region and approaches to Jacksonville, Fernandina Beach, and Brunswick in the southern region

This Day in Coast Guard History – May 17

1999-The Coast Guard "kept the peace" when the Makah Indian tribe hunted and killed a gray whale in Neah Bay, Washington.  The Makah were guaranteed the right to hunt whales in their 1855 treaty with the U.S. (Source: USCG Historian’s)

Avoiding Collisions with the North Atlantic Right Whale

A Training Module for all Mariners Professional mariners have a unique responsibility as they transit the world’s oceans. Mariners see a part of this earth that the vast majority of humanity will never witness and, in turn, they become stewards of the ocean by following the numerous regulatory measures aimed at reducing the impact of shipping on the environment. These regulations include, but certainly are not limited to, the use of AIS to avoid collisions and harmful oil spills

Greenpeace Wins Bid To Delay North Atlantic Exploration

Greenpeace won its bid to delay oil exploration in the north Atlantic when a judge ruled the British government was failing to apply a European Commission environmental directive in allocating licenses. "The decision is a huge victory for whales, dolphins and coral reefs," Peter Melchett, the environmental group's executive director, told reporters after the ruling. The government is considering an appeal against the judgment that it is not taking into account the Commission's Habitats

Blue Whale Operations Update

Coast Guard District Eleven continues to support the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in conducting overflights to monitor the locations of blue whales in the Santa Barbara Channel and surrounding area. This information is being passed to vessel agents to increase industry awareness. Since September 8, 2007, two blue whale carcasses have been discovered in the Santa Barbara Channel, and one was discovered in Long Beach Harbor

GL Certifies Whale-Watching Hydrogen Vessel

After assessment of the fuel cell system of Elding I, the whale-watching ship receives this hydrogen auxiliary power unit in addition to the regular diesel engine. Germanischer Lloyd certifies the fuel cell system and its integration according to the GL "Guidelines for Fuel Cell-Systems on board of ships and boats" (VI-3-11) ensuring the technical safety of fuel cell application. Today, the Elding I was inaugurated with a first test trip.

Whale Struck by Container Ship, Carcass Removed from Seattle Area Beach

Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. was contracted to remove the fin whale that had washed up on the Seahurst Park beach in Burien, WA. Global removed the carcass and prevented its further decomposition in the city park. On April 13, several reports were made to the U.S. Coast Guard that a whale had washed up approximately five miles south of Seattle’s Alki Point. The fin whale, not local to thearea, was believed to have been struck by a container ship at sea and brought into the Puget