Government of Canada's Whales Initiative - May 2019

Government of Canada’s
    Whales Initiative

        May 2019

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Whales Initiative Overview
• Building on the Oceans Protection Plan
• Announced in June 2018
• $167.4 M over 5 years shared by Environment and Climate
  Change Canada (ECCC), Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO),
  and Transport Canada (TC)
• Preserve and restore marine ecosystems and Canada’s
  endangered whale populations
   • Focused on Southern Resident killer whale (SRKW), North Atlantic
     right whale (NARW), and St. Lawrence Estuary Beluga (SLEB)
• Address threats of Contaminants, Prey Availability, Acoustic and
  Physical Disturbance, Vessel Strikes, and Entanglements

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Further Action to Protect SRKW
• Announced in October 2018, an additional $61.5 M shared
  between DFO, ECCC, and TC
• New measures include:
   • Continuing to identify and protect new areas of critical habitat
   • New measures to protect and recover Chinook stocks
   • Expanding the vessel slowdowns
   • Developing agreements with ferry operators and other marine
     industry partners to formalize current voluntary measures
   • Expanding vessel monitoring systems and capabilities to
     develop real time ability to avoid whale encounters
   • Enhancing regulatory control on five key organic pollutants to
     lessen contaminants

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Transport Canada’s Roles and Responsibilities
TC’s Role:
•   Support SRKW survival and recovery by focusing on mitigating the
    impacts of acoustic and physical disturbances from vessels by
    assessing, implementing and managing vessel noise mitigation
    measures in the Salish Sea

This is achieved through:
•   Operational measures to reduce underwater noise for SRKW
•   Underwater Noise Management Plans (UNMPs)
•   Legislative Changes to the Canada Shipping Act, 2001
•   Monitoring for whale presence - National Aerial Surveillance
    Program (NASP)
•   Research and Development
•   International Collaboration

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Roles and Responsibilities - DFO
DFO’s Role:
•   Lead federal role in managing Canada’s fisheries and marine mammals
•   Supporting SRKW recovery through targeted recovery actions; expanding
    the knowledge base through science, research and monitoring; and
    compliance and enforcement

This is achieved through:
•   Recovery strategies/action plans for marine Species at Risk (e.g. SRKW)
•   Managing species that support marine mammals (e.g. Chinook, herring)
•   Oceans and marine spatial planning initiatives
•   Compliance and enforcement under the Fisheries Act, Species at Risk
    Act and various regulations (e.g. Marine Mammal Regulations)
•   Marine Mammal Response Program
•   Research and monitoring on marine mammals and key threats
•   Consultation and collaboration with Indigenous groups, stakeholders,
    other levels of government (e.g. Province of BC, WDFW/NOAA)

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Development of measures to support SRKW
recovery – SRKW Technical Working Groups
• In November 2018, five SRKW Technical Working Groups
  (TWGs) established to address:
   • Prey availability and accessibility (DFO)
   • SRKW sanctuaries (DFO)
   • Commercial vessel noise (TC)
   • General vessel noise (TC)
   • Contaminants (ECCC)
• The TWGs are comprised of technical and subject matter
  experts from Indigenous communities, ENGOs, industry,
  academia and government (Canada, BC, US)
• TWGs mandate is to provide recommendations to federal
  department heads on implementation of immediate and
  longer term actions to recover SRKW

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Development of measures to support SRKW
recovery - timelines

• In late winter 2019, recommendations for summer 2019
  measures were received
• In April and early May, recommendations were refined and
  consulted on with industry, Indigenous groups and the public
• 2019 measures were announced on May 10, 2019; most will
  come into effect on June 1st, 2019 until October 31, 2019
• Recommendations for longer-term actions will be discussed in
  June 2019

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2019 noise measures to support SRKW
recovery
General Vessel Measures
1.   Critical Habitat:
     • Voluntary: turn off echo sounders when not in use and turn
        engine to neutral idle when within killer whale (KW)approach
        distance
     • Mandatory: 400m approach distance for all KWs for all vessels
        – exemptions to be provided to commercial whale watching
        industry with signed agreement with Minister of Transport
2.   Enhanced Management Areas:
     • Voluntary: 1000m go-slow in proximity to SRKW
3.   Interim Sanctuary Zones: mandatory prohibition of vessels
     entering specific areas within the enhanced management
     areas, with relevant exemptions for emergency vessels, and
     Indigenous groups, etc.

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2019 measures to support SRKW recovery
(cont.)
For Large Commercial Vessels
1. Expanded slowdown area in
    Haro Strait/Boundary Pass on a
    trial basis
      • June 1 – September 30,
          2019 with possible extension
          based on whale presence
      • 11.5 – 14.5 knots depending
          on vessel type

2. Lateral displacement of inshore
   vessel traffic away from key
   foraging areas in the Strait of
   Juan de Fuca.

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2019 measures to support SRKW recovery –
Prey Availability (DFO)
• Measures for 2019 are aimed at supporting prey availability for
  SRKW by:
   • Reducing fishery competition; and
   • Supporting prey accessibility (foraging success) by
     reducing fishing-related vessel presence / physical and
     acoustic disturbance in key foraging areas.

• 2019 measures include:
   • Area-based fishery closures for recreational and
     commercial salmon in portions of: 1) the Strait of Juan de
     Fuca; and 2) Gulf Islands (see slide 13 for map)
   • Voluntary fishery avoidance zone throughout the
     remainder of the Enhanced Management Areas, including
     the Mouth of the Fraser

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2019 measures to support SRKW recovery –
 Prey Availability (DFO)

Mouth of Fraser
• No area-based fishery
  closures identified for
  2019
• Voluntary fishery
  avoidance zone would
  apply throughout the
  Enhanced Management
  Area

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2019 measures to support SRKW recovery –
Chinook rebuilding (DFO)
• DFO is also undertaking a range of short and longer-term
  measures to conserve and rebuild B.C.’s Chinook salmon
  populations, with benefits to SRKW

• For 2019, DFO has adopted an incremental, strategic and
  targeted approach to use of hatchery production for SRKW
   • Focus on Chinook stocks/populations of importance to
     SRKW
   • Primary initiative is an increase at Chilliwack hatchery of 1
     million juvenile Chinook, resulting in 35,000 additional adults
     (30% increase in total abundance of Fraser Fall Chinook)

• Range of initiatives, programs and investments to support
  habitat protection and restoration, salmon rebuilding

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Annex - 2019 Recovery Measures

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Thank you

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