North Atlantic right whales in the Cape Cod Canal. CapeCod.com
HYANNIS – According to a report by environmental group Oceana, more than 80 percent of vessels are speeding through slow-zones enacted to protect North Atlantic right whales.
The group used data from the Global Fishing Watch mapping platform to analyze boat speeds from November 2020 through July 2022 found that most boats 65 feet or greater are speeding through slow zones designed to protect the whales, which number fewer than 340 individuals.
In Cape Cod Bay from 2020 to 2022, an average of about 55 percent of large vessels sped through 10 knot speed zones.
Boat strikes are one of the top threats to North Atlantic right whales, which can cause death or injury from blunt-force trauma or propeller cuts, according to Oceana.
“Boats are speeding, and whales are dying — it’s just that simple,” said Oceana Campaign Director Gib Brogan in the report.
“It’s clear that boats are still not abiding by the speed limits and are continuing to make the ocean a dangerous place for North Atlantic right whales. Time and time again we see what happens when speeding boats and right whales collide. Even one human-caused death is too many for this population to sustain. If NOAA wants to save this species from extinction, ships must slow down when these whales are present, and speeding boats must be held accountable. Time is of the essence before North Atlantic right whales reach the point of no return.”
The group is calling on NOAA to crack down on ships speeding and narrow federal exemptions to the Vessel Speed Rule that established the zones in 2008.
Mandatory Seasonal Management Areas where vessel speed is restricted are active in the Bay from January to May 1, and off Race Point from March 1 to April 30. The Great South Channel SMA is active later in the season from April 1 to July 31.
Dynamic Management Areas are triggered when whales are sighted in an area and impose a voluntarily speed limit of 10 knots.
The report can be found here.
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