GreenWatch

B. McPherson Will these magnificent creatures go extinct because of pollution? Who will watch for them? In a ham handed move the federal Conservative government has gutted the pollution reporting system for all three oceans that border Canada – the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic. They have given notice to 215 Pacific Region scientists and support staff, leaving five junior scientists to monitor pollution in all three oceans. Eventually more than 1000 positions in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans will be terminated. One of the casualties of this money saving will be scientists Peter Ross, an acknowledged expert on killer whales. He has sounded alarm bells about the high levels of pollution in the tissues of the local orcas especially PCB contamination. Ross also monitors and reports on other forms of contaminants in the Pacific coastal waters, watching out for sewage, chemical leachates, pesticides and salmon stocks, and this is speculation only – perhaps the e...

B. McPherson A federal court of appeal in Canada has ruled that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) had failed in its duty to protect killer whales (orcas) by not protecting crucial habitat for them. Last year EcoJustice brought suit against the DFO for failing this duty and the lower court agreed with them. The decision of the lower court was appealed by the DFO. “The court ruled that the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans must legally protect all aspects of killer whale critical habitat — including their food supply and the quality of their marine environment.” EcoJustice The iconic black and white whales have two main populations on the coast of British Columbia, the northern and the southern. The northern group is made up of 264 individuals and is considered threatened. The southern group is now reduced to 87 and listed as endangered. The southern group travels mainly in the Strait of Georgia south to Juan de Fuca Strait. Both are listed under the Specie...