Re: Whale watching industry endorsing viewing distances.
As an aquatic biologist, a sailor, rower and kayaker and generally seeker of quiet, I find it somewhat disappointing that the apparent accord deals only with distance from a surfacing whale.
Surely if noise is thought to interfere with normal orca behavior and feeding success, the “pursuit” of whale watching opportunities (presumably following radio contact among boats) is where the bulk of the noise comes from.
We regularly see whale watching boats running up the Peninsula from Victoria at full tilt heading presumably to the Penders or Active Pass; several all the way from Victoria ; a return distance of about 120 km. Twin 200 hp or larger 350 HP outboards allow the “thrilling” high speeds advertised for the RIBs (rigid hull inflatables) and high speed marine diesels on the larger craft. Surely the underwater noise generated by these high speed excursions needs to be considered as well as the (seemingly more convenient) increasing distance from a surfacing pod.
Given that the whales are underwater 99-plus per cent of the time, that is where they and their prey need to be undisturbed. It would seem to me that propeller noise during transit along such enormous swaths of water would be a significant problem.
The whale watching business is lucrative so the “agreement” on viewing distances only, is an easy one, and seems to me to based on economic, rather than biological/acoustical parameters.
George Kruzynski
North Saanich