12 Orca Expert Organizations Identify Five Key Actions for Southern Residents

Concern for the critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales is growing. If bold and immediate actions are not taken in both the United States and Canada, we face the increasing likelihood of losing this unique population forever. While we, the undersigned, appreciate the ongoing efforts and support many of the actions that are underway on both sides of the border, we feel that bigger and bolder actions are needed to give these whales a real chance at recovery. A transboundary perspective is also essential. We have identified five key actions to Southern Resident killer whale recovery. Some of these actions have been proposed among a suite of others, and we want to highlight them as being the crucial actions needed going forward. Others have yet to be seriously addressed. We are making these big-ticket, science-based recommendations to the elected officials, task force members, and working group members of British Columbia and Washington in hopes that they will prioritize them when moving forward in passing legislation, forming recommendations, and assigning funding.