Free B.C. course aims to protect whales by better educating boaters
The Marine Education and Research Society (MERS) says it created the Whalesafe Boating program because of the growing risk to whales and other marine mammals from boat strikes, fishing gear entanglements and stress from people getting too close.
'Even with all our knowledge about even who individual whales are, we have had close calls with humpback whales — we see every time we're on the water, close calls involving boaters,' said Jaicke Hildering, spokesperson and whale researcher with MERS.
'We see the (propeller) scars, we see the close calls, and the kind of human injury that is also involved here is that somebody is paralyzed on our coast, somebody has had to get reconstructive facial surgery as a result of a collision, kayaks have been flipped.'
Story continues below advertisement
The group says there are a number of points of conflict between whales and boaters that can be addressed through better education.
Whales are often oblivious to both boats and fishing gear, raising the prospect of collisions or entanglements that can lead to painful injury or even death.
0:28
Man photographed disrupting orcas with motor boat
Whales often travel in predictable patterns and can surface suddenly after long dives, or can be resting or nursing just below the surface and out of sight, it adds.
Get daily National news
Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
It's critical education that MERS says is falling through the cracks because federal agencies are too siloed, with Transport Canada focused on boater safety and Fisheries and Oceans Canada focused on species at risk.
'We've done the work, 15 years of education, but also doing surveys of boaters, where we know that the average boater wants to do the right thing, but is having problems accessing the information to close the gap between boating knowledge and safety of marine mammals and boaters,' Hildering said.
Story continues below advertisement
1:53
Whale protection program expanded
Boaters should never position their vessel in the path of a whale or try to strategize how to make it come closer to them. They should also keep an eye out for signs a whale is around, such as splashes, blows and flocks of birds.
Boaters should also stay on the offshore side of whales if the animals are travelling close to the shore.
And if a whale surfaces near you while boating, you should stop immediately, put the engine in neutral, and move away slowly once the whale is more than 400 metres away.
Anyone can sign up for the free course at the Marine Education and Research Society website.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Global News
2 hours ago
- Global News
Members of First Nation in northern Ontario to return home after wildfire evacuations
Residents of a First Nation in northern Ontario are set to begin returning home today after a wildfire threatened the community early last month and forced more than 2,000 people to evacuate. Sandy Lake First Nation says in a social media post that repatriation will start this evening, with security and essential service providers going first to help prepare for the arrival of other residents. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The provincial government says firefighting crews no longer need pumps and hoses in areas where the fire was sufficiently suppressed, although they continue to put out hot spots in southern and eastern sections of the fire today. Sandy Lake First Nation says its residents were evacuated to seven locations across the province, and it could take up to two weeks to get everyone home. National Defence sent military planes last month to airlift hundreds out of the First Nation as the fire doubled in size to almost 1,500 square kilometres. Story continues below advertisement The province says there are 44 active wildfires in northwest Ontario as of Thursday, with 15 of them out of control.
Global News
17 hours ago
- Global News
‘Cautious optimism' on cleanup for wrecked former B.C. ferry
There is renewed hope that a toxic eyesore in Mission, B.C., could be removed within the next few months. The Queen of Sidney, a former BC Ferries vessel, was consumed by flames in early May along the Fraser River, where it's been moored since 2002. The Coast Guard says the vessel doesn't pose an immediate threat to the environment, and that efforts are well underway to identify suitable options for its removal. Mission Mayor Paul Horn said the community has a 'cautious optimism' that progress is being made. 1:49 Massive mess left behind after Queen of Sidney ferry fire 'We understand that the new owner of the vessel is working hard to sell it to a salvage operation and have it moved,' he said. Story continues below advertisement Despite that Horn says the municipality has faced numerous hurdles in getting anyone to take responsibility for the cleanup. 'We are not just dealing with the Coast Guard, we are dealing with DFO (Fisheries and Oceans Canada), we're dealing with Transport Canada, we're dealing with the federal Ministry of Environment, we're dealing with provincial agencies and it's almost impossible to find out who is responsible specifically for addressing these issues,' he told Global News. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy While federal officials say the vessel isn't leaking anything and therefore isn't an environmental hazard, Horn disagrees. Horn said the frustration is only heightened by the fact that the city has been formally pushing to have the vessel dealt with since 2007. 'The best we've been able to accomplish is having it securely moored on the shore and having the other area around the foreshore cleaned up,' he said. 'There are no resources federally or provincially for cleaning up vessels or removing vessels and the penalties and fines for these vessels being left in this condition are just not there.' 1:59 Derelict Queen of Sidney ferry burns in overnight fire Derelict vessels are a growing problem plaguing the province's coastal communities. Story continues below advertisement And despite the federal government passing new legislation targeting wrecked and abandoned vessels in 2019, enforcement has lagged. It's a problem that's all too familiar for the residents of Maple Ridge, where the so-called 'McBarge' has been an eyesore for decades — and recently sank. It remains mired in the Fraser River with no clear timeline for a cleanup. 'When situations like this come up, it's not just a money issue, although that is a big part of it, but it's also an issue of jurisdiction. Who's responsible for it? You have to get permission to actually move the vessel,' Maple Ridge Mayor Dan Ruimy said. 'When a vessel goes down, does the owner actually have enough money to remove that vessel? And that's really a big part of the problem. When you have multiple owners or when you have owners who are no longer there, it becomes a game of hot potato.' Horn said that while the immediate priority is dealing with the wreck, in the long term he's also advocating for a reform of the derelict vessel system. 'We know that this is something that exists not just in Maple Ridge but all across our coast and so we're going to work with other municipalities, both of our MPs have said they're willing to go and advocate a petition on this issue in the fall legislature session,' he said. Story continues below advertisement 'We will be asking collectively for a renewal of the derelict vessel fund, we'll be asking for clarity on the jurisdictional authority of each of the various departments, we'll be asking that those different enforcement agencies work in a collaborative and team-based approach on these complex files and we'll ask for more resources for the cleanup of leaks and other hazardous materials that come out of them.'
Global News
18 hours ago
- Global News
Endangered western painted turtle released by Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society
After a long drive, a very important passenger is minutes away from freedom. Members of the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society have travelled to Kelowna's Wilden neighbourhood to release an endangered western painted turtle that had been in their care for several weeks after being run over by a car. 'She had a cracked shell, and one of the cracks on her shell in the back end was floating,' said Eva Hartmann, founder of the Interior Wildlfire Society. The turtle was found on the road near Still Pond in Wilden, and Hartmann says it's important to return the turtle to its original place for many reasons. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'It's very important that they are only exposed to anything that may be in their home pond, where they are from, and that is exactly where they go back to because we don't want to spread diseases around,' said Hartmann. Story continues below advertisement The turtle's home pond is next to a wildlife tunnel built into Wilden. However, not all the animals find their way through it. Like the turtle being released Thursday, some take the road. 'On either side of this road are wetlands, so they're migrating between those ponds to lay their eggs,' said Johanna Eger, Wilden marketing manager. The society has partnered with developers of Wilden to keep turtles and other wildlife safe. 'We need to be alert, especially with the nesting season right now, with the turtles,' said Jody Crumb, Interior Wildlife Society volunteer. 'If we just slow down, we can give them the chance to cross the road safely, lay their eggs and make their way back in.' Now that the turtle is back in Still Pond, it can flex its flippers and go on a big swim.
