Expert: Ban on whale watching could actually be bad for orcas

The Washington State Orca Task Force issued a recommendation to end orca whale watching for the next three to five years, but could that actually hurt the struggling population more than it helps it?

RELATED: Orca task force issues final recommendations

Among its many recommendations, the orca task force put forth a measure to temporarily halt whale watching in Puget Sound, in an effort to reduce noise pollution that makes it difficult to hunt prey. The issue, though, according to one expert: Whale watchers not only don’t hurt orcas, they actively help them.

“If they go through with the suspension of whale watching, that will actually be worse for the whales,” Dr. David Bain told KIRO Radio.

Bain has spent his whole life studying orcas, carries a specific expertise in their underwater life and how they interact with boats, and has served on the Orca Conservancy’s Vessel Working Group.

According to him, whale watching boats in the area have gone out of their way in recent months to slow traffic in areas where orcas reside.

“If you do have whale watchers present, what the commercial operators have offered to do is put up a flag that will be easily recognizable,” said Bain. “You see the flag and you know it’s time to slow down.”

More than that, he argued, “without whale watchers, people probably won’t know (the orcas are) there.”

“Go slow” zones

One of the recommendations issued by the orca task force involves the instituting of “go slow” zones, areas where orcas commonly reside where boats will be required to greatly reduce their speed.

These zones further reduce the impact of whale watching boats, and in fact, Bain claimed, whale watchers in a “go slow” area are less likely to disturb orcas than commercial boats outside of those zones.

“Those ships are so loud that even when they’re miles away, they’ll be louder than a whale watching boat at 200 yards,” he said.

There’s still time before anything is actually instituted, as recommendations like orca whale watching moratorium still need to be passed by the state Legislature. But if this does end up passing, it sounds like there’s a chance it could end up being bad for an already-struggling orca population.

RELATED: Is Washington’s orca task force focusing on the wrong solutions?

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