Measures are already in place

Measures have been taken to try to address the alarming number of right whale deaths in the Gulf of St. Lawrence this year.

A press conference was held in Charlottetown on Thursday to discuss the findings of a report into the deaths of 12 right whales this year alone in the Gulf. Necropsies were performed on seven of those whales. But measures to make the waters safer for the endangered species were in place long before the report was released. The federal government stepped in and asked ships to slow down while some fisheries were closed.

On July 20, federal Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc directed the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to close the snow crab fishing area 12 in the southern Gulf. This was done to protect right whales from the risks posed by snow crab fishing gear in the area. The minister also directed that other fisheries in the area be limited, delayed or closed for the same reason.

Then, in August, Transport Canada imposed a temporary mandatory speed restriction for vessels 20 metres or more to a maximum of 10 knots when travelling in the western Gulf and a voluntary slowdown for vessels under 20 metres.

As of Oct. 2, penalties have been issued by Transport Canada to four vessels that did not respect the mandatory speed restrictions.

The federal government will also continue to monitor the migration of the whales and the efficiency of its measures. Experts at Thursday’s press conference said they don’t expect the whales to leave the Gulf area until December.

Those same experts pointed, based on the seven necropsies, to blunt force trauma caused by collisions with ships and getting entangled in snow crab fishing gear as the two causes of death.