A paper published by researchers from the University of Washington has shown how poorly whales are protected from ship collisions in our oceans.
The paper found that less than 7% of the planet’s hotspots for whale-ship collisions have protections in place to protect these magnificent creatures.
The paper found that global shipping traffic overlaps with about 92% of the planet’s whale ranges, meaning there is little space for these creatures to find respite from global shipping traffic. The team found that less than 7% of the area of greatest risk and overlap has protections for whales. So, in over 92% of the high-risk areas, the poor whales are at the mercy of shipping traffic.
According to the paper’s senior author, University of Washington assistant professor of biology and researcher with the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels Briana Abrahms:
“This translates to ships traveling thousands of times the distance to the moon and back within these species’ ranges each and every year, and this problem is only projected to increase as global trade grows in the coming decades. As much as we found cause for concern, we also found some big silver linings. For example, implementing management measures across only an additional 2.6% of the ocean’s surface would protect all of the highest-risk collision hotspots we identified.”
While the study’s lead author and University of Washington postdoctoral researcher in the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels Anna Nisi added:
“Whale-ship collisions have typically only been studied at a local or regional level — like off the east and west coasts of the continental U.S., and patterns of risk remain unknown for large areas. Our study is an attempt to fill those knowledge gaps and understand the risk of ship strikes on a global level. It’s important to understand where these collisions are likely to occur because there are some really simple interventions that can substantially reduce collision risk.”
