Katharine Helmore
18th January 2011
The Western North Pacific gray whale is under threat of extinction, say WWF, as Russian plans a third oil platform off Sakhalin Island to meet rising demands from Asia
A Russian oil giant's plans to expand oil production in far eastern regions of the Pacific Ocean threaten the dwindling population of endangered western gray whales, say WWF.
Environmentalists fear the construction of a new oil platform off Sakhalin Island by the majority-state owned Sakhalin Energy Company could wipe out the remaining 130 western gray whales.
The shallow waters off Russia's largest island provide a vital feeding ground for the endangered species, which migrate there each summer. Gray whales exist on both sides of the Pacific, but the Eastern population are not thought to mix with the endangered Western species found off Sakhalin Island.
The oil rich seabed off the island, holding an estimated 14 billion barrels of oil deposits, has been widely exploited in recent years to supply China, Japan, South Korea and Thailand with oil and gas. Although oil exports have boosted the local economy it has been at the cost of marine life. More shipping traffic will only contribute further risk to an already threatened species and a higher chance of a potentially devastating oil spill.
'There are only 30 female western gray whales of breeding age remaining and the population is already on the brink of disappearing forever,' said Aleksey Knizhnikov, from WWF-Russia. 'The loss of even a few breeding whales could mean the end for the population.'
Sakhalin Energy has previously been praised by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for postponing a summer scheduled seismic survey, something the company duly boasted of on its website. However following a meeting in early December 2010, WWF learnt that the Sakhalin Energy Company, part-owned by Shell, plans to go ahead with a survey this summer to find a suitable site for the third platform.
Summer surveys disrupt the feeding patterns of whales but are favoured by oil companies as they try to avoid the harsh Russian winters.
http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/734741/russias_oil_ambitions_off_sakhalin_island_could_extinct_whale_species.html
Showing posts with label gray whale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gray whale. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Russia's oil ambitions off Sakhalin Island could extinct whale species
Katharine Helmore
18th January 2011
The Western North Pacific gray whale is under threat of extinction, say WWF, as Russian plans a third oil platform off Sakhalin Island to meet rising demands from Asia
A Russian oil giant's plans to expand oil production in far eastern regions of the Pacific Ocean threaten the dwindling population of endangered western gray whales, say WWF.
Environmentalists fear the construction of a new oil platform off Sakhalin Island by the majority-state owned Sakhalin Energy Company could wipe out the remaining 130 western gray whales.
The shallow waters off Russia's largest island provide a vital feeding ground for the endangered species, which migrate there each summer. Gray whales exist on both sides of the Pacific, but the Eastern population are not thought to mix with the endangered Western species found off Sakhalin Island.
The oil rich seabed off the island, holding an estimated 14 billion barrels of oil deposits, has been widely exploited in recent years to supply China, Japan, South Korea and Thailand with oil and gas. Although oil exports have boosted the local economy it has been at the cost of marine life. More shipping traffic will only contribute further risk to an already threatened species and a higher chance of a potentially devastating oil spill.
'There are only 30 female western gray whales of breeding age remaining and the population is already on the brink of disappearing forever,' said Aleksey Knizhnikov, from WWF-Russia. 'The loss of even a few breeding whales could mean the end for the population.'
Sakhalin Energy has previously been praised by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for postponing a summer scheduled seismic survey, something the company duly boasted of on its website. However following a meeting in early December 2010, WWF learnt that the Sakhalin Energy Company, part-owned by Shell, plans to go ahead with a survey this summer to find a suitable site for the third platform.
Summer surveys disrupt the feeding patterns of whales but are favoured by oil companies as they try to avoid the harsh Russian winters.
http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/734741/russias_oil_ambitions_off_sakhalin_island_could_extinct_whale_species.html
18th January 2011
The Western North Pacific gray whale is under threat of extinction, say WWF, as Russian plans a third oil platform off Sakhalin Island to meet rising demands from Asia
A Russian oil giant's plans to expand oil production in far eastern regions of the Pacific Ocean threaten the dwindling population of endangered western gray whales, say WWF.
Environmentalists fear the construction of a new oil platform off Sakhalin Island by the majority-state owned Sakhalin Energy Company could wipe out the remaining 130 western gray whales.
The shallow waters off Russia's largest island provide a vital feeding ground for the endangered species, which migrate there each summer. Gray whales exist on both sides of the Pacific, but the Eastern population are not thought to mix with the endangered Western species found off Sakhalin Island.
The oil rich seabed off the island, holding an estimated 14 billion barrels of oil deposits, has been widely exploited in recent years to supply China, Japan, South Korea and Thailand with oil and gas. Although oil exports have boosted the local economy it has been at the cost of marine life. More shipping traffic will only contribute further risk to an already threatened species and a higher chance of a potentially devastating oil spill.
'There are only 30 female western gray whales of breeding age remaining and the population is already on the brink of disappearing forever,' said Aleksey Knizhnikov, from WWF-Russia. 'The loss of even a few breeding whales could mean the end for the population.'
Sakhalin Energy has previously been praised by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for postponing a summer scheduled seismic survey, something the company duly boasted of on its website. However following a meeting in early December 2010, WWF learnt that the Sakhalin Energy Company, part-owned by Shell, plans to go ahead with a survey this summer to find a suitable site for the third platform.
Summer surveys disrupt the feeding patterns of whales but are favoured by oil companies as they try to avoid the harsh Russian winters.
http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/734741/russias_oil_ambitions_off_sakhalin_island_could_extinct_whale_species.html
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Tourists get physical kissing grey whale calves off Baja Peninsula
RIGHT: A grey whale calf is petted by tourists in San Ignacio Lagoon on the Pacific side of the Baja Peninsula in Mexico2nd June, 2010
When these grey whales decided to get up close and personal with a group of tourists, the magical meeting was sealed with a kiss.
The gentle giants investigated as the whale-watchers’ boat sailed into their summer home – a lagoon off the Baja Peninsula in Mexico.
The US and Canadian tourists were able to pet and hug the mammals, so close had they surfaced, with one woman even puckering up for a peck on the lips with a calf.
‘The love-in was amazing given our treatment of the whales throughout history,’ said Michael Nolan, who took the pictures in March.
‘To think, man has almost wiped out the California grey whale from the planet twice by whaling activities –first in the mid-1800s and again at the turn of the 20th century.
'It is all the more amazing that these whales have either forgiven or forgotten our past transgressions against them.
‘Now the fact they choose to actively interact with our boats gives us hope for the future relationships between both species.’
There about 20,000 grey whales in the eastern Pacific. They are generally comfortable around people and often like to interact with humans.
They are found in Asia, where they are critically endangered, and one was seen in the Mediterranean, off Israel, last month.
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/829008-tourists-get-physical-kissing-grey-whale-calves-off-baja-peninsula
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
20,000 humpbacks start migration up Australia’s west coast
Western Australia wildlife officers prepare for a busy whale seasonThe annual migration of whales from Antarctica to warmer waters off Western Australia's northern coast has begun, and wildlife officers from the Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) are predicting a busier than usual whale season.
DEC senior wildlife officer Doug Coughran said humpback whales are now making appearances off the Perth coast, while southern right whales are moving along the south coast.
"Based on current science, more than 20,000 humpback whales will migrate to the State's north and some of these will be preparing to give birth," Mr Coughran said. "These whales should be a regular sight off the WA coast until the end of the year. We'll see humpbacks passing through Perth waters during June and July as they head north and then again from September as they return to their feeding grounds in Antarctica."
The 13,000 kilometres round-trip is made in small groups and humpback migrations were among the longest known in the animal kingdom. The west coast population migrates to the so-called ‘maternity ward' in the north of Western Australia is one of the largest and most successful recovering populations in the world.
"The reality is that as their numbers continue to rise, nature will need to take its course to separate the stronger animals from the weaker ones, in order to maintain a healthy population," he said.
Humpback whaling stopped in 1963
The whaling of humpbacks in Western Australia ceased in 1963 when the population was depleted to less than 500 individuals.
"To go from having less than 500 humpbacks on the west coast, to having more than 20,000 today is a spectacular wildlife recovery story," Coughran said.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Big Oil still refusing to act to save some of world’s rarest whales
Scientists find whales more endangered in Exxon, BP and Rosneft oil areas
June 2009. Oil and gas exploration by energy giants Exxon, BP and Rosneft is seriously threatening one of the world's most critically endangered whales, according to a panel of top scientists in a new report.
The Western Gray Whale Advisory Panel (WGWAP), composed of 11 scientists and representatives from Shell and Sakahlin Energy, met in April to discuss how oil and gas development affect the whales' main annual feeding area off the northeastern coast of Sakhalin Island, Russia.
Whales scared away by seismic activity.
The scientists found that in 2008 there was a large decrease in the number of whales in their annual feeding area near the shore during a period of loud industrial activity, including a seismic survey. This is significant because if the whales are displaced from this primary annual feeding area, they will have less success reproducing.
"Western gray whale cows with their calves feed near the shore, but the industrial noise resulting from oil and gas development activities is pushing them out of the area," Doug Norlen from Pacific Environment. "Any disturbance of these critically endangered whales' behavior is particularly concerning as there are only 130 of them left."
Exxon, BP and Rosneft refuse to act
However, Exxon, BP and Rosneft have refused to address their threats to the Western Gray Whale and these oil giants plan to carry out further activities in 2009 including seismic testing, construction and other loud activities that could displace whales from their annual feeding area.
"The new information presented at this meeting has heightened rather than diminished the Panel's concern that whale distribution and behaviour may have been seriously affected by industrial activities - on land and offshore - in 2008," according to the panel's report. PetitionMeanwhile, 35,000 people from across the world have signed on to a petition calling on five major oil companies including Exxon, BP and Rosneft to postpone any new development work in the vicinity of the Western Gray Whale feeding area this summer, and to work with experts find adequate measures to protect the critically endangered population. WWF is sending the petitions to oil companies this week, urging them to act immediately as the gray whales will start to arrive at their summer feeding area near Sakhalin in a couple of weeks."Tens of thousands of people are calling on Exxon, BP and Rosneft to immediately halt their potentially destructive activities at Sakhalin Island this summer, and these companies can either choose to act responsibly or stay their course and help push the western gray whale further toward extinction," said Aleksey Knizhnikov, WWF Russia.
The panel reiterated it call for a moratorium on all development activities in the area this summer. Because of those concerns, Sakhalin Energy - a partnership between Shell, Gasprom and other sharholders - agreed in April to cancel their proposed 2009 seismic activities in the whales' feeding area.
The Western Gray Whale is one of the world's most endangered whales, with only 25-30 breeding females remaining.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/western-gray783.html
June 2009. Oil and gas exploration by energy giants Exxon, BP and Rosneft is seriously threatening one of the world's most critically endangered whales, according to a panel of top scientists in a new report.
The Western Gray Whale Advisory Panel (WGWAP), composed of 11 scientists and representatives from Shell and Sakahlin Energy, met in April to discuss how oil and gas development affect the whales' main annual feeding area off the northeastern coast of Sakhalin Island, Russia.
Whales scared away by seismic activity.
The scientists found that in 2008 there was a large decrease in the number of whales in their annual feeding area near the shore during a period of loud industrial activity, including a seismic survey. This is significant because if the whales are displaced from this primary annual feeding area, they will have less success reproducing.
"Western gray whale cows with their calves feed near the shore, but the industrial noise resulting from oil and gas development activities is pushing them out of the area," Doug Norlen from Pacific Environment. "Any disturbance of these critically endangered whales' behavior is particularly concerning as there are only 130 of them left."
Exxon, BP and Rosneft refuse to act
However, Exxon, BP and Rosneft have refused to address their threats to the Western Gray Whale and these oil giants plan to carry out further activities in 2009 including seismic testing, construction and other loud activities that could displace whales from their annual feeding area.
"The new information presented at this meeting has heightened rather than diminished the Panel's concern that whale distribution and behaviour may have been seriously affected by industrial activities - on land and offshore - in 2008," according to the panel's report. PetitionMeanwhile, 35,000 people from across the world have signed on to a petition calling on five major oil companies including Exxon, BP and Rosneft to postpone any new development work in the vicinity of the Western Gray Whale feeding area this summer, and to work with experts find adequate measures to protect the critically endangered population. WWF is sending the petitions to oil companies this week, urging them to act immediately as the gray whales will start to arrive at their summer feeding area near Sakhalin in a couple of weeks."Tens of thousands of people are calling on Exxon, BP and Rosneft to immediately halt their potentially destructive activities at Sakhalin Island this summer, and these companies can either choose to act responsibly or stay their course and help push the western gray whale further toward extinction," said Aleksey Knizhnikov, WWF Russia.
The panel reiterated it call for a moratorium on all development activities in the area this summer. Because of those concerns, Sakhalin Energy - a partnership between Shell, Gasprom and other sharholders - agreed in April to cancel their proposed 2009 seismic activities in the whales' feeding area.
The Western Gray Whale is one of the world's most endangered whales, with only 25-30 breeding females remaining.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/western-gray783.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)