Rescheduled Helpin’ Out Event Urban Chinook Salmon
How Could a New Habitat Protection Law Help Orcas? Amy Carey Explains.
Executive Director of Sound Action, Amy Carey, explains why orcas need soft shorelines in Puget Sound. House Bill 1579, if passed, will protect shorelines through the revision of HPA (hydraulic project approval) process for construction in waters.
Sound Action has spent countless hours watchdogging every marine HPA and fighting to ensure shorelines are protected. This fix in permitting could make significant improvements for fish and orcas.
Want to learn more about this work? Watch Shorelines of Stone.
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BOLD Guide to Helping Orcas in the 2019 Washington State Legislature
Beginning in January 2019, many of the recommendations from the Orca Task force will enter a new process in Olympia. Many recommendations need funding in order to be implemented, others need legislative approval. Your voice is needed in order for important measures to actually move forward to protect endangered Southern Resident killer whales and the salmon they depend on. Read the handy, simplified guide created by the BOLD team and learn how to contact your representatives. The orcas can’t wait, so act today!
BOLD team: Cindy Hansen, Orca Network, Susan Marie Andersson, Salish SEA, Monika Wieland-Shields, Orca Behavior Institute, Whitney Neugebauer, Whale Scout.
Perspectives from a Female Killer Whale Scientist – New Research, Dams, Fisheries Management, and Hope
Learn about the biggest issues facing endangered Southern Resident killer whales from Dr. Deborah Giles, Science Advisor for the Orca Salmon Alliance. We talk about challenging issues such as dam removal, fisheries management, and also learn how Giles manages working “on behalf of the Southern Resident killer whales” as an advocate and scientist. Plus, learn how does Giles copes with the devastating losses suffered by the whales this past summer.
Giles also holds positions with Wild Orca, Conservation Canines, Friday Harbor Labs, and serves on the Orca Task Force’s Prey and Vessels working groups.
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Did the Orca Task Force Make a Positive Difference? A Killer Whale Biologist, David Bain, Weighs in.
Now that the first year of the two-year Washington State Orca Task Force has completed their final list of recommendations, and Governor Inslee announced a proposed 1.1 BILLION dollar budget for recovering endangered killer whales, we ask David Bain, killer whale biologist and Whale Scout Program Advisor, to evaluate the results. Did the Orca Task Force move in the right direction to benefit the whales? Find out in the podcast!
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Governor Inslee’s proposed budget announcement
Executive Director Whitney Neugebauer discusses the details of Inslee’s budget proposal on the Canadian Skaana podcast
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Reactions to Inslee’s Budget and Plan to Recover Orcas from Monika Wieland-Shields and Whitney Neugebauer
Washington State Governor Jay Inslee announces is budget and plans to save endangered Southern Resident killer whales. The 1.1 Billion dollar packaged surprised many, but take a closer look at where the money will be spent. Whitney and Monika will break down the major line items and how those choices may impact orcas. Inslee’s proposed budget will still need to go through the legislature and gain support from Washingtonians, but would it be money well spent for orcas? We were surprised to hear that nearly a third of this budget would go to culvert replacement. While important in it’s own right for many reasons, replacing culverts won’t be the most efficient action to help Chinook and therefore orcas. Plus, Inslee decided to include a whale watching moratorium and increase the approach distance from 200 yards to 400 yards. Monika also shares some of her recently published work with Orca Behavior Institute on transient killer whale predation on pinnipeds. Could future policies endanger the healthy population of transient killer whales in Puget Sound? Learn more!
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Jacques White from Long Live the Kings Talks Salmon, Orca Task Force, and Pinnipeds
Jacques White is the Executive Director of Long Live the Kings, a group with the mission to restore wild salmon and steelhead and to support sustainable fishing. On this episode of the Whale Scout Podcast we discuss his experience serving on the Orca Task Force, whether or not the recommendations go far enough to save endangered Southern Resident killer whales, and how hatcheries, Snake River dams, and pinnipeds (seals and sea lions) are connected to the larger ecosystem interactions that impact whales.
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Erin Corra from FOLKS shares Lime Kiln Lighthouse Centennial Event and more!
Erin Corra, FOLKS (Friends of Lime Kiln Society) Founder and Executive Director shares the magic of Lime Kiln State Park, also known as “whale watch park” and how her team of volunteers can make your next visit a spectacular one. The FOLKS team also has great events lined up this winter and summer including a very special event celebrating the centennial of the Lime Kiln Lighthouse!
More about Erin:
Erin grew up sailing the great lakes of Michigan, where her love of lighthouses and the great outdoors began. At the end if her sophomore year at Northern Michigan University in 1995, she moved to Washington to complete her degree in Environmental Education and Interpretation from Huxley College at Western Washington University. Erin then sailed out to the San Juan Islands in 2002 and rooted down. In 2007, Erin served as Interpretive Specialist at Lime Kiln Point State Park until budget cuts eliminated the position in 2010. Currently, she serves as Founder and Executive Director of Friends of Lime Kiln Society (FOLKS), a 501c3 established in 2011 to fundraise for park needs along with keeping Interpretive, Stewardship and Volunteer Programs thriving in the park. Erin also serves as the Interpretive and Educational component on the San Juan National Monument Advisory Committee and has formerly served as President/VicePresident on the Keepers of Patos Light. Erin continues her passion to bring natural and cultural history to life and inspire awe into action by advocating through educational platforms like Lime Kiln Point State Park and other fabulous public lands.
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Monika Wieland-Shields Talks Urgent Need for Task Force Comments, Writing, and Research
President of Orca Behavior Institute (OBI), Monika Wieland-Shields shares her thoughts on the 2018 Orca Task Force in Washington State and discusses the urgent need for the public to submit comments on the final Draft Recommendations Report. She also shares some of the important research OBI is doing to inform policy decisions being discussed at the Task Force meetings including a controversial cull of pinnipeds (seals and sea lions). Plus, hear about a book Monika is self-publishing!
For more information on how to craft BOLD comments to submit to the Task Force, please check out our Guide to BOLD Commenting document. This was a collaborative project between Whale Scout, Orca Behavior Institute, Salish SEA, and Orca Network. Please note that the most powerful comments are informed and personal, so please consider using our personal words and thoughts in communications with the Task Force.
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