January 20th, 2009
More bad news for B.C.’s orcas
Sarah King
As if it couldn’t get any worse with the poor southern resident orcas going into winter pretty well starving, but now we find out that the food they are eating is slowly poisoning them. According to a new study in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, the Chinook salmon that the southern resident orcas of Puget Sound prefer for their diet is contaminated with PCBs, flame retardants and other persistent chemicals that are retained in body fat.
As the lead researcher points out in an interview with the Edmonton Sun, these whales may have a small population but they have large habitat needs. The residents cover a lot of ground, and as such, they come under threat not only from contaminated food but from various forms of human disturbance. As an endangered species under Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA), DFO should be acting now to ensure the protection of their habitat so the southern residents and their threatened northern counterparts can recover. This is why Greenpeace and various other environmental organizations in Canada filed a lawsuit against the federal government with the help of the awesome environmental lawyers at Ecojustice, for their failure to legally protect the orcas’ critical habitat as is required under the Act. Our orcas and other endangered species need protection now, and many of our ailing fish stocks, including B.C.’s wild salmon stocks, need to be safeguarded against overfishing and destructive practices.
More bad news for B.C.’s orcas
Categories: Greenpeace, Oceans
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January 22nd, 2009 at 2:42 am
Thanks for posting this. This is an important issue. I have read about this recently as well, of all places a book entitled “Rowboat in a hurricane” by Julie Angus (a Vancouverite). Definitely recommend the book.
In my opinion, the DFO is a criminal organization. If you look at their track record, it is abysmal. After all, someone who consistently breaks the law is a criminal, right?
I hope Ecojustice nails them to the cross. I am sure there are some good people in that department (but they tend to leave soon) but the upper echelons of that department is rotten to the core.
Gotta love Paul Watson and his consistent no holds barred fights with DFO.
Oops, Sea Shepherd mentioned on GP blog…a big no no
January 22nd, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Yeah, DFO’s track record is unimpressive at best, and it is certainly time they take responsibility and action to protect ailing species, fish stocks, habitat, the whole none yards.
haven’t heard of that book…..I’ll check it out. Love local authors.
PW certainly does know how to ruffle the fins of the DFOers…..the more they hear the reality of the situation the better!