Contact: Stephanie Dorezas                   FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                             12/7/98 

Endangered North Atlantic right whales received timely protection from ship strikes today from the United Nation's International Maritime Organization. The body voted unanimously for July 1999 implementation of a mandatory ship reporting system in two critical habitat areas off Massachusetts and coastal Florida and Georgia, key feeding and nursery areas for right whales.

"The reporting system will improve the chances that the remaining 300 or so highly endangered right whales will escape deadly encounters with large ships passing through essential whale habitat off the East Coast," said Terry Garcia, assistant secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere. "The decision significantly improves protection for the slow-moving whale since ship strikes account for 50 percent of known right whale deaths. We believe this mandatory reporting system is essential if we are to ensure the survival of these highly endangered animals."

The proposal was initially developed by the Commerce Department's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in conjunction with the Marine Mammal Commission. The final decision to seek international approval of the system by the International Maritime Organization was made by President Clinton in April.

The reporting system will act in the same manner as a road sign in a school zone area in that it will warn transiting ships about the presence of right whales. The ship reporting system requires ships weighing more than 300 gross tons entering these areas to notify the U.S. Coast Guard. In return, the mariner will be provided with automated information about the last known locations of any right whales. The data will be regularly updated by the Coast Guard and private spotters scouting the area from aircraft. Implementation of the mandatory reporting system will not begin until July 1, 1999, in order to provide sufficient notice to mariners operating in the areas. Congressional authority that provided the Coast Guard with the authority to implement the system came from an effort spearheaded by Congressman William Delahunt (D-Mass).

Several thousand right whales once existed in the North Atlantic Ocean. Years of commercial hunting at the turn of the century severely depleted the stocks. Whalers considered the animal the "right whale" to hunt because they were slow moving, migrated close to shore, and stayed afloat after being killed. Today, despite more than 60 years of protection, right whales have not fully recovered.

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service has taken several steps to protect this species, including establishing federally-designated critical habitats and providing right whale precautions on nautical charts and in other navigational aids. For example, an aircraft survey system has been implemented off Massachusetts for the past two years in cooperation with the state. Biologists in boats and aircraft go out several times a week to survey waters that serve as shipping lanes for commercial traffic and feeding grounds for right whales. When they locate right whales the Fisheries Service-led teams broadcast whale alerts to mariners via radio, faxes, and Internet postings.

The effort to address the issue of ship strikes, however, has proven difficult. Agency officials believe the IMO-approved ship reporting system provides a critical tool to address this important issue.

The northern right whale is a medium-sized baleen whale. Adults are 45-55 feet long. Distinctive features include: no dorsal fin, a large head, narrow upper jaw, strongly bowed lower jaw. Calving occurs in the winter along the southeast coast of the U.S. Calves nurse for at least nine months. Age at sexual maturity is five to nine years, with females giving birth to one calf every three to five years.

The northern right whale was listed as endangered throughout its range on June 2, 1970, under the Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969.

The International Maritime Organization, a specialized agency of the UN, provides a forum for countries to address international shipping issues.