A year after the population of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales suffered devastating losses, Canadian officials say measures taken this season to protect the species have worked.
With the summer fishing season in the Gulf of St. Lawrence drawing to a close, the Fisheries Department confirmed Friday that not one whale has died as a result of a ship strike or fishing gear entanglement — the main causes for most of the deaths last season.
In all, 17 right whales died last year — 12 of them in Canadian waters — prompting concerns that the population might be on the fast track toward extinction.
The federal government responded with a series of protection measures, which included speed restrictions for boats, increased surveillance and a series of closures of fishing areas where right whales were spotted.
Some of the measures were unpopular with fishermen, but Fisheries Department spokesperson Adam Burns said they were “extremely effective.”
“We know that the measures we put in place this year have had real economic impacts on some communities,” he said. “But this is an important step forward for the management measures we put in place.”
