13 August 2018 (VANCOUVER) — More needs to be done to protect the already endangered Southern Resident orca population currently dealing with the death of the first baby born to the pod in more than three years, and another extremely emaciated whale named ‘Scarlet’, says Mike Hudema, a spokesperson for Greenpeace Canada.

“It has been heartbreaking to watch the events of the last few weeks and it highlights the urgent need to do more to protect these iconic and endangered orcas,” said Mike Hudema of Greenpeace Canada. “These beautiful orcas need the federal government to live up to their responsibilities and start taking away threats to their survival, not put more on the table. We need more than talk from Prime Minister Trudeau. To save these endangered orcas we need decisive action now to ensure that the orcas’ main food source, salmon, recovers and is not further depleted. We need to stop allowing projects like the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, which risk oil spills and tanker noise, to further threaten the Southern Resident orca’s ability to survive.”

The government of Canada, under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, recently pledged to purchase the Trans Mountain pipeline and expansion project from oil giant Kinder Morgan for $4.5 billion after Kinder Morgan abandoned the project and the government was unable to find another buyer. The expansion project would bring a seven-fold increase in tar sands tanker traffic through the endangered orcas’ critical habitat. Trudeau continues to push the project despite endangered species protection being a federal responsibility.

A recently released Greenpeace USA report documents the risks that the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project poses to Southern Resident orcas, which could potentially lead to their extinction if the project goes ahead. The report draws on research illustrating threats to the Southern Resident orcas – including from oil spills – which could drive the population to extinction.

The Southern Resident orca, of which only 75 remain, are endangered and their existence is threatened by the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion and the associated increase in tar sands tanker traffic. Not only would an oil spill contaminate the waters in which orcas live, but it would threaten the salmon population they depend on for sustenance. Malnutrition and starvation are significant reasons that the Southern Residents are endangered. This problem is exacerbated by high levels of ship noise, which can interfere with orcas’ communication and echolocation, which they use to hunt for food. An oil spill, or even just the additional noise from the seven-fold increase in tar sands tanker traffic, could mean extinction for these orcas.

Included (and referenced) in the Greenpeace USA report:

  • The proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project would increase seven-fold the number of tar sands tankers traveling from Vancouver through the Salish Sea and down the Pacific Coast of the United States.
  • The endangered Southern Resident Orca population could be driven to extinction by the increased ship noise as well as the risk of oil spills and ship strikes from the tankers.
  • The pipeline could lead to the “near continuous” presence of tankers in the orcas’ habitat.
  • Southern Resident whales reduce their feeding activity by 25% when boats are present.

For more information please contact:

Mike Hudema, pipelines campaigner at Greenpeace Canada, based in Vancouver, who is available for interviews.  Contact:  [email protected]; 1-780-504-5601.

Contact Greenpeace press office on: Marie Woolf, 1 (514) 418-0071; 1-604-620-6334 x 1021 or [email protected],