Vol. 3, No. 1 Contents
Headline Back Issues
Winter 1998
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US panel ponders possibility of whale-watching regulations Bourne, Massachusetts ---- In elegant slow motion, a humpback whale glides by a boat full of breathless passengers, its white flippers gleaming neon green just under the surface of the nutrient-rich waters on Stellwagen Bank. Whale watchers can't help but use words such as inquisitive, gentle, and intelligent to describe this living oxymoron ---- a marine mammal that moves underwater with bulky grace. We'd give anything to believe not only that close observation by humans is harmless to whales, but that they actually enjoy our company. "After watching whales for over 20 years I believe they know we're out there to see them," said Captain Steve Milliken, operator of the Provincetown-based Dolphin Fleet at a recent forum on the ethics of whale watching. "Many of them give us close approaches." But researchers say they don't know enough about the long-term effects on whales of the growing whale-watching industry. Even if the whales do enjoy watching humans as much as we enjoy watching them, that doesn't necessarily mean they're unharmed by the increasing contact. If, for example, people watching distracts the whales from feeding, that might have long-term consequences. On the other hand, scientists note a recent population increase among endangered humpback whales ----- the species most watched on Stellwagen Bank. Yet, there are cases in which whale-watch activity has directly harmed whales. In two confirmed incidents last season, Massachusetts-based whale-watch vessels collided with whales. A third reported incident is still under investigation. And so, on a frosty January day punctuated by snow squalls, a panel met at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in Bourne to discuss whether additional measures should be put into place in April, when whale-watching season begins, to protect whales from being loved to death. Whale-watch operators, government officials, scientists, naturalists, researchers, conservationists, and representatives of the US Coast Guard participated in the forum sponsored by the Provincetown-based Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) and Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Bank draws whales, admirers Spanning the mouth of the Massachusetts Bay, Stellwagen Bank is an important feeding ground for several whale species, including endangered humpback and North Atlantic right whales. This popularity with whales makes the bank the preferred destination for numerous Massachusetts whale-watch tours during the spring, summer, and fall. Conservationists and others throughout the Gulf of Maine are concerned about an apparent increase in whale-watch vessel traffic in the whales' north Atlantic feeding and breeding grounds. Animals that are already jeopardized by commercial shipping traffic, loss of habitat, entanglement in fishing gear, and other dangers can't afford this increased threat, some assert. But whale-watch proponents describe the industry as more beneficial, on the whole, than harmful to endangered whales. Whale-watch vessels, they point out, provide a platform for whale research and build public awareness of the plight of endangered whales, creating support for whale conservation. Noting that CCS conducts whale research aboard the Dolphin Fleet's whale-watch vessels, the Center's Executive Director Peter Borrelli opened the January forum by stating its premise: "That whale watching is legal and not inherently harmful to whales and is of enormous scientific value." He explained that CCS, Dolphin Fleet, and the New England Aquarium are named as defendants in a Massachusetts lawsuit brought by whale activist Max Strahan claiming that whale-watching activities inherently violate the US Marine Mammal Protection Act. Guidelines vs. regulations The US Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act, and Canada's Fisheries Act, prohibit killing, injuring, or harassing whales. Harassment defines a broad range of activity that can include causing the animal to change its normal behavior, such as if a whale stops feeding as a whale-watch vessel approaches. US regulations also require all vessels to stay at least 500 yards/457 meters away from endangered North Atlantic right whales. Canada is considering increasing its protective regulations for right whales as well. But neither country specifically regulates commercial whale-watch activity in the Gulf of Maine. US whale-watch tours operate under voluntary guidelines developed by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) that include avoiding maneuvering closer than 100 feet/30 meters to any whale. Forum panelists noted, however, that the guidelines focus more on preventing harassment of whales than on preventing collisions between whales and whale-watch vessels. Some fear collisions will increase as tours increase, and as some companies switch to faster, jet-propelled vessels. Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) encourages whale-watch operators to follow the voluntary whale protection guidelines it developed for all mariners. Deborah Tobin, Education Coordinator for East Coast Ecosystems (ECE), a marine education and research organization based in Freeport, Nova Scotia, described the guidelines as inadequate. But DFO contends that they are helping to prevent problems for whales. And, noted DFO Marine Mammal Advisor Jerry Conway, the Department hopes to develop "new and more comprehensive regulations that will ensure that marine mammals are given the utmost protection." Tobin asserted that most whale-watch operators in Canada's Bay of Fundy have, since 1997, followed a voluntary code of ethics, developed with ECE's assistance, that take local factors more into account. ECE has also created brochures to educate passengers about how to be responsible whale watchers. But Tobin ultimately favors government regulation of whale watching in the Bay of Fundy in light of the industry's growth. "The code of ethics is successful up to a point, but when there's few whales and stiff competition, people tend to get carried away sometimes," she said. Selling the drama Brochures depicting whales exhibiting their most dramatic ----- but least common ----- behavior are standard advertising for many whale-watch companies. Critics of the practice, including Mason Weinrich, Executive Director and Chief Scientist at the Gloucester-based Cetacean Research Unit, say this misleads passengers about what to expect, and feeds competition among whale-watch operators to pursue crowd-pleasing whales, and to race from one whale "hot spot" to another. In an attempt to squeeze as many trips as possible into a day, some companies even offer sunset cruises that, by definition, pass through whale habitat when visibility is poor, increasing the chance of whale/vessel collisions. One audience member at the forum emphasized that passengers don't want thrills at the whales' expense. "As a photographer I want to be as close as possible to get the best shot, but not if it's going to endanger the whale," he said. Milliken supports posting whale-watch guidelines in public view on all whale-watch vessels to inform passengers about what is considered responsible conduct. Cape Ann Whale Watch tour operator Jim Douglas said whale-watch captains try to control irresponsible behavior by policing themselves informally, but added, "We need some sort of enforcement out on the bank." The presence of US Coast Guard vessels on the water encourages private and commercial mariners to behave, he said. According to NMFS Biologist Doug Beach, the Coast Guard can stop a vessel and write a violation report, but then turns the case over to NMFS for prosecution. The Coast Guard also plays a key role in the disentanglement of whales from fishing gear and in operating reporting systems designed to prevent whale/vessel collisions. Some panelists, including whale-watch operators such as Milliken, of the Dolphin Fleet, voiced support for tightening the voluntary guidelines under which US-based whale-watch outfits operate. CCS Senior Scientist David Mattila described the current guidelines as "the least restrictive of any official [whale-watch] guidelines anywhere in the world." But according to Beach, the NMFS guidelines "are complex and not enforceable as regulations. Therefore, it is difficult to determine their effectiveness." Others, including Bruce Russell who represented the International Fund for Animal Welfare, called for federal regulations specifically addressing whale watching, even as some wondered aloud whether either tighter guidelines or regulations would help at all, given the difficulty of policing the open water. Strike prevention solution sought "I'm amazed that a $50 million industry operating around a federally endangered species operates on a voluntary basis alone," said Dennis Nixon, Director of Graduate Programs at the University of Rhode Island's Department of Marine Affairs. He called for certification requirements for whale-watch captains and naturalists. Now, most naturalists on whale-watch vessels are employed by whale-watch companies. Nixon proposed that whale-watch naturalists be employed by NMFS as naturalist/observers, placing them in a better position to report irresponsible behavior on the part of whale-watch operators or other mariners. Naturalists should also be required to contribute to whale research, he said. To reduce whale-watch vessel traffic in whale habitat and to help recover research costs, Nixon proposed that marine sanctuaries be authorized to charge fees in the same way that the US land-based National Parks charge fees to tour companies, recovering that cost with a small increase in their ticket prices. A working group was to meet in late February to examine issues having to do with the interaction of whales and whale-watch vessels throughout the region, especially within the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. The group will determine whether voluntary guidelines should be made more stringent, or whether enforceable whale-watch regulations should replace them. In an interview after the forum, Borrelli said strategies to protect whales from vessels have to consider commercial shipping and recreational boat traffic as well, asserting, "Whale watching is part of an overall complicated issue of vessels in general." NMFS would have to pursue legislative amendments to the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act to gain the authority to specifically regulate the US whale-watch industry. Stellwagen Bank Sanctuary Manager Brad Barr noted that the Sanctuary has the authority to issue and enforce any new regulation of whale-watch activity within Sanctuary boundaries, but contends that a larger, region-wide solution would be more effective, since whale-watch vessels and whales sometimes cross paths outside of the Sanctuary. Borrelli doubts guidelines could be converted to regulations before the next whale-watch season begins, but said, "I think the industry could do something easily by April." Noting the lack of scientific evidence that whale watching has long-term effects on whales, some panelists favored beefing up the voluntary guidelines until additional research reveals what those effects actually are, and then developing regulations based on those results. But researchers said it could take years to determine the long-term effects of whale watching on whales, moving other panelists to recommend that regulations be adopted as a precautionary measure, then revised according to any new information that research contributes. Nixon maintains that regulation is inevitable in light of last season's collisions and the fear that such incidents will only increase. "The policy window is open," he said. "Either move ahead with the regulatory process or risk a federal judge making [regulations] for you." |
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