Mandatory 1,000 m vessel buffer
Petitioners ask the Minister of Transport to implement a mandatory vessel-distance regulation requiring recreational and commercial whale-watching vessels to stay at least 1,000 metres from Southern Resident killer whales in relevant Canadian waters.
Why we would sign this petition
- Reduces vessel disturbance by keeping whale-watching and recreational boats farther away, helping Southern Residents communicate and forage with less underwater noise interference.
- Aligns Canadian rules with Washington State’s buffer and Canada’s biodiversity commitments, creating consistent protections across the Salish Sea.
- Creates a clear, enforceable distance standard that could lower immediate disturbance and contribute to reducing extinction risk for this endangered population.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Exempts larger commercial shipping that causes major underwater noise, so the buffer may leave the main noise sources unaddressed.
- Enforcement in busy, transboundary waters could be difficult and costly, reducing the rule’s practical effectiveness.
- Focusing on vessel distance for whale-watching may not address underlying problems like prey (salmon) declines; broader measures might be more effective.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the Government of Canada Whereas: Southern Resident killer whales are an endangered population listed under Canada's Species at Risk Act and the United States Endangered Species Act; Legally protected critical habitat for Southern Residents is located within the heavily transited transboundary marine waters of the Salish Sea; Underwater noise and physical disturbance from vessels affect the ability of Southern Residents to communicate successfully and forage effectively; Southern Resident killer whales can lose more than 50% of their echolocation range when foraging near commercial shipping traffic; Increased shipping traffic from container expansions at Roberts Bank and oil tankers for Trans Mountain increase underwater noise in critical habitat. The lost foraging on salmon associated with this noise increases the risk of extinction for Southern Residents; More ships will reduce the quiet time Southern Residents can feed without noise interfering with echolocation and communication; Considering these threats, Washington State recently passed legislation (Senate Bill 5371) that establishes a mandatory 1,000-yard buffer for recreational and commercial whale watching vessels around Southern Resident killer whales; and Canada has committed to halting and reversing biodiversity loss, as declared with the signing of the Kunming- Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. We, the undersigned residents of Canada, call upon the Minister of Transport to implement a mandatory vessel distance regulation where recreational vessels and commercial whale-watch vessels must not be closer than 1,000 metres to Southern Resident killer whales, consistent with vessel distance regulations for these whales in Washington State.
Government response
No government response is available yet.