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Best Practices for Whale Watching in the USCanadian Transboundary Waters of Haro Strait

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Title: Best Practices for Whale Watching in the USCanadian Transboundary Waters of Haro Strait


1
Best Practices for Whale Watching in the
US/Canadian Transboundary Waters of Haro Strait
  • The Whale Museums Soundwatch Boater Education
    Program
  • www.whale-museum.org

2
Whale Watching in the Haro Strait Region
Over the past ten years whale watching
activities have grown into a billion dollar
(USD) industry involving over 80 countries and
territories and over 9 million participants (Hoyt
2001). The Canadian/U.S. boundary waters of Haro
Strait are often referred to as one of the
busiest whale watching areas in the world, with
over 80 commercial vessels originating from
nearly 50 companies in the US and Canada.
Soundwatch estimates that last year more than
500,000 people went whale watching from
commercial boats, while 3,000-8,000 engaged in
whale watching from private boats, and another
10,000 from private and commercial kayaks.
3
Federal Marine Mammal Viewing Guidelines Are Not
Regulations
  • Currently there are no marine wildlife viewing
    or whale watch regulations in U. S. or Canadian
    waters of the Salish Sea. In the U.S., marine
    mammals are protected under the Marine Mammal
    Protection Act of 1972 and are managed by the
    National Marine Fisheries Service who have sole
    jurisdiction (excepting walrus and sea otters)
    superceding any state or local governments.
    Fisheries and Oceans Canada manage marine mammals
    under the Fisheries and Oceans Act of 1978-79,
    but there is no marine mammal protection act
    equivalent in Canada. Both the U.S. and Canadian
    federal agencies have established northwest
    regional marine mammal viewing guidelines to
    prevent the likelihood of harassment or injury,
    but at this time there are no laws regulating
    viewing.

4
The Whale Museums Soundwatch Boater Education
Program
  • Since 1993, The Whale Museum has officially
    operated the Soundwatch Boater Education Program
    to promote stewardship of the marine wildlife
    inhabiting the waters of the transboundary area
    by residents, visitors and commercial users. The
    program focuses on the development, distribution
    and evaluation of best boating practices for
    marine wildlife viewing in the Puget Sound,
    Georgia and Juan de Fuca Straits.

5
Soundwatch Best Practices for Viewing Marine
Wildlife
Each year since 1988, The Whale Museum has
summarizes existing regional viewing guidelines
and other relevant marine wildlife information
into Voluntary Best Practices brochures, flyers
and posters targeting private boaters and
kayakers. Soundwatch then promotes the guidelines
at regional presentations, posts them at local
boating facilities and on the World Wide Web, and
distributes them at The Whale Museum and
on-the-water from the Soundwatch boater education
vessel Raydiance. Soundwatch promotes community
generated, voluntary guidelines that can be
easily adapted and changed to best suit specific
wildlife needs and that rely largely on public
education, commercial buy-in and peer pressure to
change behavior.
6
The International Whale Watch Operators
Association Northwestwww.nwwhalewatchers.org
Since its inception in 1994, the international
Whale Watch Operators Association Northwest
(WWOANW) has annually adopted a working set of
international voluntary guidelines for
commercial boat operators that are more explicit
then those outlined by both the US and Canadian
Federal governments. Soundwatch encourages the
WWOANW to adopt an annual set of commercial
guidelines to best meet changing marine wildlife
needs. Incorporating suggestions from region
NGOs like Soundwatch, commercial drivers,
residents and regional scientists, the WWOANW
implements a new working set of guidelines each
spring, and holds drivers meetings to interpret
the changes for the commercial operators who
ultimately are responsible for the behavior of
the commercial vessel industry as a whole.
7
Feedback and Evaluation of Commercial Operator
Compliance
  • In addition to distributing best practices to
    private boaters, the Soundwatch boat daily
    monitors the commercial operators to make sure
    they are following their own guidelines.
    Perceived violations are recorded with the time,
    date, and location of the incident in a
    Soundwatch Incident Log. Twice monthly feedback
    reports are generated for each individual company
    showing any incidents documented by Soundwatch.
    Each company receives a report on their boat(s)
    and an overall industry summary by mail, fax or
    email. The reports are designed to be a tool for
    company owners and operators to improve or
    maintain best practices. The incident data is
    also used to evaluate the effectiveness of
    existing guidelines and to provide a basis for
    the development of new guidelines. 

8
Partnerships Across the Border Soundwatch and
the Marine Mammal Monitoring Group (M-3)
www.salishsea.ca
In 2001 Fisheries and Oceans Canada piloted the
Marine Mammal Monitoring Project to assess vessel
impacts on marine wildlife in southern British
Columbia. Soundwatch and M-3 act as transboundary
counter parts, working in tandem to increase the
effectiveness of both teams efforts.
9
Be Whale Wise Harmonized International Best
Practices for Viewing Marine Wildlife in the Haro
Strait Region
  • M-3 and Soundwatch worked in close collaboration
    with both the US and Canadian governments, The
    Whale Watch Operators Association Northwest and
    other regional stakeholders to develop a single
    set of voluntary best practices to be printed in
    an international wildlife viewing brochure
    entitled Be Whale Wise. In 2002, both governments
    and The Whale Watch Operators Northwest adopted
    Be Whale Wise as the general code of conduct for
    viewing marine wildlife in the transboundary
    region. Any special local conditions warranting
    more specific guidelines are presented by
    separate flyers that accompany the Be Whale Wise
    brochure.

10
Be Whale Wise Guidelines For Watching Marine
Wildlifehttp//www.salishsea.ca/guidelines
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