To save whales, Canada sets a maritime speed limit

WHEN 12 NORTH ATLANTIC right whales died in the Gulf of St Lawrence in the spring and early summer of 2017, Canada imposed speed limits on large ships in the area and told snow-crab fishermen to move. In the following year the government worked with researchers, fishermen and the shipping industry to refine the restrictions. No whales died in the gulf in 2018. “We kept wondering if what we had done was good, or were we lucky?” says Moira Brown, a scientist at the Canadian Whale Institute, a research body.

Apparently it was luck. Six right whales died in the gulf in June this year after colliding with ships or getting entangled in fishing lines. Three others were spotted near Miscou Island trailing ropes, which attach crab and lobster traps on the seabed to buoys (see map). Just 400 North Atlantic right whales, which can grow to 18 metres (60 feet) in length, remain alive. The steps Canada is taking to save them from extinction are expensive for industry.