SHIPPING LANE SHIFTED TO SAVE RARE WHALES

[Anonymous]

Shipping Lane Shift to Save Rare Whales
BOSTON 
– The busy shipping lanes in and out of Boston Harbor will be narrowed
and shifted northward Sunday in a bid to lower the risk of rare right
whales being killed by ships.It’s the first time in U.S. history
shipping lanes have been changed to protect wildlife.Each year, ships
from around the world, carrying everything from cars to natural gas,
make about 3,500 trips through the designated lanes stretching from
southeast of Cape Cod into the port of Boston.On Sunday, the final
stretch of that corridor will be given a slight northeast rotation.
Researchers say that will take ships outside an area with a high
concentration of North Atlantic right whales and reduces the ship
strike risk by more than 50 percenkeep them from entering.Ship strikes
and marine gear entanglements are the top human causes of right whale
deaths. Twenty-eight deaths blamed on ship strikes have been documented
since 1972, including eight since 2004.

North Atlantic right
whales spend the winter in warm water to the south and migrate to the
Gulf of Maine each spring before returning south in the fall.The
shipping lanes have run through the Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary, a vital habitat for whales and other marine life. An
analysis of 25 years of data of right whale sightings showed the lanes
crossed an area with dense congregations of the animals, likely because
that’s where their food is, Merrick said.

The analysis also
showed far fewer whales in an area just north of the lanes.The narrower
lanes were approved by the Coast Guard and the International Maritime
Organization, and navigators will adjust to them, said Andy Hammond,
executive director of the Boston Pilots Association. But he said any
loss of space is important because it reduces the mobility of often
massive ships in bad weather and various unforeseen circumstances.”You
don’t want to get into a situation that you can’t maneuver your way out
of, and to maneuver a large ship is not the same as putting on the
brakes on a car or truck,” he said.Meyer said the lanes shift is much
less controversial than a proposal still under federal review to reduce
the speed limit to 10 knots in areas where whales are active. Shippers
aren’t convinced slowing down will make a difference for the whales,
but the benefits of shifting the lanes away from them is clearer, he
said.Hammond said the lane shift is worth a try because of its possible
benefits for the whales.”As long as a balance is struck between
navigational safety and keeping that safety level high, tnd 10 to 22
minutes to each one-way trip.Lost minutes can be important because
Boston harbor is too shallow for ships to move in and out when the tide
is low, said Richard Meyer, executive director of the Boston Shipping
Association, which represents shipping companies and port employers.
That could force shippers leave the harbor prematurely or keep them
from entering.Ship strikes and marine gear entanglements are the top
human causes of right whale deaths. Twenty-eight deaths blamed on ship
strikes have been documented since 1972, including eight since
2004.North Atlantic right whales spend the winter in warm water to the
south and migrate to the Gulf of Maine each spring before returning
south in the fall.The shipping lanes have run through the Stellwagen
Bank National Marine Sanctuary, a vital habitat for whales and other
marine life. An analysis of 25 years of data of right whale sightings
showed the lanes crossed an area with dense congregations of the
animals, likely because that’s where their food is, Merrick said.

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July 10, 2007 at 12:13 PM