A whale protection unit in B.C. has had a very busy season covering a vast area of the province responding to an increase in whale strikes.
Dan Vo, a field supervisor with Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Whale Protection Unit, based out of Annacis Island, spoke with Glacier Media about what the two teams are seeing on the water.
“We are so busy,” he says. “We are trying to do our best but it seems like we need more officers.”
Vo says there are so many incidents with the public and whales that they aren’t able to deal with all of the reports in a timely fashion. Their investigations are also lengthy due to interviewing all the witnesses and collecting evidence.
"Every case is different. We have to analyze it from top to bottom, to determine if people intended to put themselves in that situation or they just happen to be on top of the water,” says Vo.
When it comes to the number of complaints they've received about people getting too close or endangering whales, Vo says the number of occurrences is comparable to the last three years.
"I think we’ve got the same amount of calls and there's many … it's all over from the west coast of Vancouver Island all around Vancouver Island, Victoria, the Lower Mainland, all the way up to Sechelt along the Sunshine Coast, all the way to Campbell River, and extends further to Johnstone Strait up to Port Hardy,” he says.
This year alone he believes they’re investigating nearly 1,000 files and he expects more than 600 of them will result in violations.
The Whale Protection Unit has responded to more vessels striking whales this year, he tells Glacier Media.
“There’s a lot more this year, it’s crazy,” he says. “Probably like a dozen cases.”
If someone hits or makes contact with a whale, they have to report it to Fisheries and Oceans Canada right away, as part of the Marine Mammal Regulations.
“We deal with a lot of incidents and I’ve been involved in a couple of whale entanglements,” says Vo.
Approaching marine mammals too quickly, coming too close or making too much noise can disturb, stress or even harm marine mammals.
Increasing issues with drones
Vo explains how people using drones near whales has been the number one complaint they’ve received this year.
"It's quite a hot topic, and it has always been, for the last few years... the drone is so cheap nowadays. You can get... $99 drones and you can fly anywhere,” he says.
A B.C. film company was fined for flying a drone too close to orcas. Video from the Aug. 13, 2021, drone recording was sent to Fisheries and Oceans Canada. A total fine of $30,000 was levied against a Vancouver company and its drone operator.
After the story was published, a Glacier Media reader reached out to the reporter asking if a personal drone video his son filmed off Vancouver Island was illegal.
Vo watched the video and confirmed it was in violation.
Under the Marine Mammal Regulations, it is illegal to approach marine mammals with an aerial drone at an altitude below 1,000 feet (about 304 metres) and within a half nautical mile (about 926 metres).
“Drones are known to cause some behaviour changes in whales. It could affect their feeding and their socializing,” he says.
‘Ignorance’ towards whale regulations
Researchers and scientists have determined what is the safest distance people need to be from whales.
A minimum distance of 400 metres from all killer whales in southern B.C. coastal waters between Campbell River and just north of Ucluelet is required. A distance of 200 metres is required for killer whales in B.C. and the Pacific Ocean.
"We have a beautiful coastline with so many activities happening and now the whales are coming back, especially the humpback,” says Vo.
The southern resident killer whales, which are endangered with approximately only 73 whales remaining, are coming back to B.C. waters.
“They're showing up all year round now; not like it used to be, so when you're in transit pay more attention,” he says.
Recently, Vo has investigated claims of commercial whale-watching vessels, kayakers and people swimming too close to whales.
“We sill see a lot of ignorance,” he says. “People know by now that they’re not supposed to get too close to the whales.”
He hears from people that they get excited and want to take a photo of their once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“They totally forget about the safety, the regulations and they just want to come in and take a picture,” says Vo.
That whale could breach at any moment and it would put people at risk if they’re too close, he says.
“It’s exciting to see but they are wild animals and they have teeth that are like 19,000 pounds per square inch bite force and they can rip a great white shark's belly open easily.”
Vo hopes people will educate themselves on whales and always give them lots of space to be on their own.
“Every year, we try to do education and outreach, we try to get out there as much as possible to raise awareness,” he says. “I guess it takes time and hopefully people pay more attention.”
