Strategies For Reducing North Atlantic Right Whale Ship Strikes

Merrick, Richard¹; Bettridge, Shannon³; Cole, Timothy¹; Johnson, Lindy²; Pace, Richard M.¹; Silber, Gregory³; Wiley, David⁴

(1) Northeast Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, 166 Water Street, Woods Hole, MA, 02543, USA

(2) NOAA General Counsel’s Office of International Law, NOAA, Herbert C. HooverBldg., 14^th and Constituion Ave. NW, Washington, D.C., 20230, USA

(3) Office of Protected Resources, NOAA Fisheries, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD, 20910, USA

(4) Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA’s National Ocean Service, 175 Edward Foster Road, Scituate, MA, 02066, USA

Reducing lethal interactions with vessels is important to the recovery of North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis). This species’ abundance is only around 313 animals, yet during 2001-2005 an average of 1.8 right whales were observed to die annually due to ship strikes Analyses of known vessel strikes suggest that vessel speed affects both the number of ship strikes and the lethality of a strike. Thus, reducing lethal interactions requires that vessels and whales be separated or that vessels reduce their speed in the presence of whales. Ship strike risk analyses for areas of New England (i.e., Cape Cod Bay [CCB], Stellwagen Bank NMS [SBNMS], and the Great South Channel [GSC]) suggest a separation strategy can significantly reduce whale deaths. For example, excluding vessels from the GSC critical habitat area by designating an Area To Be Avoided (ATBA) during April-July would reduce ship strike risk in this major right whale foraging area by 75%. Vessels excluded from the ATBA would be requested to proceed at slow speeds (10-12 kt) compared to existing speeds (up to 30+ kt). Similarly, a small realignment of the Traffic Separation Scheme [TSS] through the SBNMS could reduce right whale ship strike risk there by 58%. To date, NOAA and the USCG have: (a) established Mandatory Ship Reporting Systems; (b) established recommended routes through CCB and the SEUS; (c) obtained approval from the International Maritime Organization to shift the TSS through the SBNMS in July 2007; and (d) issued whale sighting alerts to mariners recommending that vessels proceed at speeds below 10 kts near whales. NOAA/USCG plan to evaluate the TSS through the GSC, establish seasonal speed restrictions, and implement an ATBA in the GSC. Some of these will require rulemaking and proposals to the International Maritime Organization.