WASHINGTON — On Friday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries denied a petition to establish a 10-knot vessel speed limit and other protective measures in the Gulf of Mexico to protect the endangered Rice’s whale, which is estimated to have a population of only about 50 individuals remaining.
Instead of prioritizing efforts to immediately alleviate risk of deadly vessel strikes, the agency is instead focusing on other non-regulatory conservation actions and further evaluation, leaving the whale at risk of extinction in the meantime.
“We’re incredibly disappointed in NOAA’s decision to further delay desperately-needed measures to protect the Rice’s whale. Without immediate action we could end up seeing the first extinction of a great whale species,” said Christian Wagley, Coastal Organizer with Healthy Gulf. “We already slow down to…