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WDC2023-007 NMLC Release (16)

Seal Rescued in Marshfield Released Back Into The Wild

For Immediate Release, May 31, 2023 PLYMOUTH, MA - A young male grey seal that...

Norway ups whale kill numbers and removes whale welfare protections

The whaling season in Norway has begun on the back of disturbing announcements from the...
Image taken from an unmanned hexacopter at >100ft during a research collaboration between NOAA/SWFSC, SR3 and the Coastal Ocean Research Institute. Research authorized by NMFS permit #19091.

Southern Resident orca petition to list them under Oregon Endangered Species Act advanced

The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission voted today to advance a petition seeking to protect...
Hysazu Photography

WDC and Conservation Partners Continue to Seek Oregon Endangered Species Protection for Southern Resident Orcas

On Friday, April 21st, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission will determine whether the petition...

German MPAs Highly Ineffective Says WDCS

On European Maritime Day,  WDCS has criticized the German government over what it calls highly ineffective approach to protecting  Germany’s marine wildlife, with even designated marine protected areas(MPAs) leaving  animals exposed to kilometers of fishing  nets, waste water and noise pollution from military exercises.

WDCS Germany’s Fabian Ritter, explains: “We call for marine protected areas that deserve that name – and which are not only existing on paper. Destructive fishing methods such as bottom trawls, beam trawls and gillnets must not have a place inside protected areas. Furthermore whales need a quiet environment. Seismic surveys and military exercises must not be allowed in protected zones.”

Germany has designated a marine protected area in the waters of the island of Sylt – a key breeding area for harbour porpoises in the North Sea, and eight protected areas have been designated in the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) focusing on Harbour Porpoises. But this protection still mainly exists on paper only as fishermen are allowed to use destructive methods, and military exercises still take place in and around these areas.

Ritter is critical of the German government for simply paying lip service only to this important issue. “N either the German government nor the federal government of Schleswig-Holstein have done their homework. This needs to change in the future. It’s up to the German government now to set clear signals for a more efficient protection, as this will also gain attention throughout the EU.”

More on Marine Protected Areas