Well, I guess my editorial of the other day was just an example of great minds thinking alike (small joke). Here’s our friends north of the border asking for a closure on chinook. They have also asked for a ban on whale watching boats. More on that in a future post.
The growing realization that southern resident orcas are starving to death has led green groups to urge stronger measures to save them. The David Suzuki Foundation and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation have called for an immediate closure of fishing for chinook salmon on B.C.’s coast. Orcas rely on chinook to survive and it’s their preferred prey…. Under the Pacific Salmon Treaty, up to two million chinook are caught each year on both sides of the border. According to the environmental groups, the southern resident orca population requires about 1,400 chinook each day to remain alive. Charlie Smith reports. (Georgia Straight)
From the David Suzuki Foundation:
We’re asking the minister to close all chinook fishing and expand foraging refuges to cover critical habitat, and to prohibit fisheries until the end of October. Recovery plans are needed for the orcas’ food source, chinook salmon. Whale-watching operations and private vessels must also be prevented from targeting these critically endangered whales.
Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: british columbia, canada, chinook, David Suzuki Foundation, Puget Sound, Raincoast Conservation Foundation | Comments Off on Canadian environmental groups call for closure of chinook fisheries and removal of whale watching boats.
