Southern Resident orca critical habitat – where are we now?

In 2014, WDC supported a petition by our colleagues at the Center for Biological Diversity asking the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to expand critical habitat for the endangered Southern Resident orca community.  Unfortunately, four years later, we’re still waiting for NMFS to take action to protect more of the Southern Residents’ home.

The summer and fall range of the Southern Resident community was designated as critical habitat shortly after they were listed as an endangered species in 2005.   At that time, NMFS did not include the coastal waters of Washington, Oregon, and California because they were unsure if those areas included important features critical to the survival of the orcas.  However, after over a decade of dedicated research, we now know that these coastal waters are vital for the survival of the Southern Residents in the late fall, winter, and early spring.

Sadly, we have also learned that the top threats to their recovery – prey depletion, toxic contamination, acoustic and physical disturbance – impact the orcas in these coastal waters as well.  The orcas, particularly K and L pods, spend over half their time on the outer coast, foraging off the mouths of major rivers and continuing to target salmon.  Declining salmon runs, toxic pollution like the “California signature” of DDT, and increasing human-made noise in the ocean need to be addressed in their coastal habitat as well if the Southern Residents are to survive and thrive.

Based on these research findings, NMFS accepted a petition to expand designated critical habitat to include these coastal waters and in February of 2015 announced the agency would begin the process to revise critical habitat.  The petition also requested that NMFS consider adding sound as a feature essential to their survival, and therefore protected under current and future critical habitat.  Orcas, like all whales, are acoustic beings that rely on sound to navigate, find prey, and communicate.

With increasing concern about planned projects like Canada’s Trans Mountain Pipeline and the U.S.’s proposed offshore drilling plan, protecting the coastal home of the Southern Residents is more important now than ever.  The noise caused by these potential developments makes it more difficult for the orcas to forage for their already-scarce food, and the added risk of oil spill would be catastrophic for the small population.

Yet, despite a coalition of organizations asking NMFS to expedite the expansion of critical habitat, the agency delayed action and set a timeline of releasing a proposal in 2017.  Now, already a few months into 2018, we are still waiting on that proposal.  We’ve been through this process before with North Atlantic right whales – it took WDC and our partners more than 5 years and two lawsuits to get NMFS to expand critical habitat for right whales.  We didn’t give up and we were ultimately successful, and we are once again prepared to do what it takes to ensure that the Southern Resident orcas’ entire home is protected as well.  With the current chaotic situation in Washington D.C. and uncertainty within the agencies, we are making sure the Southern Residents are not forgotten and that a critical habitat expansion continues to progress.

Thank you for helping us remind NMFS that they committed to more protection for the home of this unique orca community.

• Need a refresher on Southern Residents and critical habitat?  Revisit our “Mayday Monday” series for all the details.
• Want to do more to help?  Check out Don’t Let Orcas Be Dammed for more about how WDC is working to ensure the survival of the Southern Resident orcas and actions you can take.  You can also donate directly to WDC, Adopt an Orca and support our work, or give back while you shop!