Background
The purpose of wildlife deterrence operations is to reduce impacts to wildlife by attempting to keep animals away from oil.
The NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is the federal regulatory agency mandated with the management and oversight of marine wildlife such as, cetaceans (whales and dolphins), including the federally endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW), pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), and other marine organisms. Marine mammals are protected in U.S. waters under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) additional protection provided to endangered and threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
The MMPA prohibits harassing, harming, or killing marine mammals, but has an exemption for federal or state employees if the harassment to marine mammals is necessary for the health and safety of the animals or for human safety. The ESA also prohibits the harassment, harm, or killing of listed species, although it does not have a specific exemption for federal and state employees.
Since the use of deterrents intentionally causes a behavior change and will incur some level of impact, deterrence activities must be consistent with both federal laws that protect SRKWs and must be approved by NMFS. NMFS has pre-authorized monitoring and certain SRKW deterrence activities that can be implemented by the Incident Command under a NMFS permit during oil spills.
The Northwest Regional Contingency Plan (NWRCP) includes a plan for deterring Orca, also known as Killer Whales (NWRCP 9310). Under the plan, all operations related to SRKW deterrence will be directed by the SRKW Deterrence Team Leader within the Wildlife Branch of the Incident Command. Because of the permits and expertise required to conduct this tactic, a representative of NOAA Fisheries or their designee will fill this position.
The table below contains contact information for state and federal agencies, the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, research organizations, and whale watching organizations who may provide expertise and equipment to support marine mammal monitoring and deterrence during an oil spill. The table is intended to be used by an established Wildlife Branch under an Incident Command or Unified Command. Several of the assets on the list are not dedicated to oil spill response, and these assets are considered non-dedicated or Vessels of Opportunity (VOO). It is important that trained assets do not self-deploy. Individuals can be charged with violating the MMPA and the ESA if they engage in whale deterrence activities without the direction of an Incident Command System or if they conduct these activities without prior approval of NMFS.
For techniques related to marine mammal deterrence, refer to NMFS’s Pinniped and Cetacean Oil Spill Response Guidelines (No. NMFS-OPR-52 (2015)) available at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/document/pinniped-and-cetacean-oil-spill-response-guidelines
Supporting information to the 2020 NWACP, including contact information and more information on alternative marine mammal hazing techniques, can be found in the document Southern Resident Killer Whale Oil Spill Resources [PDF, 172 KB]. In addition, NOAA Fisheries has drafted an Implementation Plan [PDF, 346 KB] for hazing of Southern Resident killer whales, which provides guidance for whale monitoring and hazing activities as part of the NWACP.
Marine Mammal Response Resource List:
To find the nearest West Coast Stranding Network in WA, click this link.
Organization |
Location |
Potential Resources |
Tier |
Contact Name |
|
Link |
| Beam Reach | San Juan Island, WA | Cetacean monitoring, hydrophones, and a vessel. *pending KW Deterrence training. | 1* | Val Viers | vveirs@gmail.com | https://www.orcasound.net/ |
| Cascadia Research | Olympia, WA | Cetacean monitoring and response, vessel. *pending KW deterrence experience. | 1* | Doug Sandilands; John Calam | dsandilands@cascadiaresearch.org ; calambokidis@cascadiaresearch.org | https://cascadiaresearch.org/ |
| Center for Whale Research | San Juan Island, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, monitoring, and a vessel. | 2 | Michael Weiss | michael@whaleresearch.com | https://www.whaleresearch.com/ |
| Focus Wildlife International | Anacortes, WA | KW Deterrence experience, vessels, monitoring, ICS training, HAZWOPER, oiled wildlife rehabilitation gear and facility. | 1 | Chris Battaglia | admin@focuswidlife.org | https://www.focuswildlife.org/ |
| Lummi Nation | Bellingham, WA | Wildlife monitoring, vessels, ICS training, HAZWOPER, KW deterrence experience. | 1 | Emily Wirtz | emilycw@lummi-nsn.gov | https://www.lummi-nsn.gov/ |
| Makah Tribe | Neah Bay, WA | Pinniped expertise, monitoring, and vessels. *pending KW Deterrence training. | 1* | Jon Scordino | Jonathan.scordino@makah.com | https://makah.com/ |
| MARECOTEL | Seabeck, WA | Cetacean monitoring and a vessel. *pending KW deterrence experience. | 1* | Greg Schorr or Erin Falcone | gschorr@marecotel.org efalcone@marecotel.org | https://www.marecotel.org/ |
| NOAA | San Juan Islands & Seattle, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, vessels, monitoring. | 2 | Brad Hanson | brad.hanson@dfw.wa.gov | https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/about-us |
| Nomad Expeditions | Orcas Island, WA | KW Deterrence experience, monitoring, and vessel. | 1 | Jeff Foster | jefffoster13@yahoo.com | |
| Ocean Research College Academy | Everett, WA | Cetacean and pinniped monitoring, vessels, KW deterrence experience. | 1 | Jennifer Olson | jenolson@everettcc.edu | https://www.everettcc.edu/programs/stem-health-prof/orca |
| Oceans Initiative | Seattle, WA | Cetacean and pinniped monitoring and a vessel. *pending KW deterrence experience. | 1* | Rob Williams/ Erin Ashe | erin@oceansinitiative.org | https://oceansinitiative.org/ |
| Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary | Neah Bay, WA | Wildlife monitoring and a vessel. *pending KW Deterrence training. | 1* | Vessel Operations Coordinator, LTJG Jack Gerrior | voc.ocnms@noaa.gov | https://olympiccoast.noaa.gov/ |
| Orca Behavior Institute | San Juan Island, WA | Cetacean expertise, monitoring, and a vessel. *pending KW Deterrence training. | 1* | Monika Wieland-Shields | monika@orcabehaviorinstitute.org | https://orcabehaviorinstitute.org/ |
| Orca Conservancy | Seattle, WA | Cetacean monitoring. KW detterence training. | 3 | Tamara Kelley | tamara@orcaconservancy.org | https://www.orcaconservancy.org/ |
| Orca Network | Freeland, WA | Cetacean monitoring. | 3 | Susan Berta | susan@orcanetwork.org | https://www.orcanetwork.org/ |
| Pacific Whale Watch Association | Anacortes, San Juan Islands, Bellingham, Port Townsend, Edmonds, Seattle, Port Angeles, WA and BC | Cetacean and pinniped monitoring and vessel fleet. | 2 | Erin Gless | erin@pacificwhalewatchassociation.com | https://www.pacificwhalewatchassociation.com/ |
| PacMam | Anacortes, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, monitoring, and a vessel. | 2 | Cindy Elliser | cindy.elliser@pacmam.org | https://www.pacmam.org/ |
| San Juan County Marine Mammal Stranding Network | San Juan Island, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, vessels, monitoring, KW deterrence experience. | 1 | Jessica Ferrar | jessica@whalemuseum.org | https://whalemuseum.org/pages/marine-mammal-stranding-network |
| Seadoc Society | Orcas Island, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, vessels, monitoring, KW Deterrence experience. | 1 | Joe Gaydos | jkgaydos@ucdavis.edu | https://www.seadocsociety.org/ |
| Sealife Response Rehabilitation Rescue | Des Moines, WA | pinniped expertise, monitoring, and vessels. | 2 | Casey Mclean | casey@sr3.org | https://www.sealifer3.org/ |
| Soundwatch Boater Education Program | San Juan Islands & Seattle, WA | Cetacean expertise, vessels, monitoring, KW Deterrence experience. | 1 | Alanna Frayne | Alanna@whalemuseum.org | https://whalemuseum.org/pages/soundwatch-boater-education-program |
| US Coast Guard | Port Angeles, Port Townsend, & Bellingham WA | KW Deterrence and vessel fleet. | 1 | Sector PS Command Center | sectorpugetsoundcc@uscg.mil | https://www.pacificarea.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/District-13/Units/Sector-Puget-Sound/ |
| US Navy | Everett & Bangor-Kitsap, WA | Cetacean and pinniped monitoring, ICS training, vessels. *pending KW deterrence experience. | 1* | Naval Station Everett Spills Phone | NOSC- BK spill phone number | (425) 210-8391 | 360-340-5991 | |
| WDFW – Marine Mammal Team | Lakewood & Port Townsend, WA | Cetacean and pinniped expertise, monitoring, vessels, KW Deterrence experience. | 1 | Casey Clark | casey.clark@dfw.wa.gov | |
| WDFW – Oil Spill Team | Olympia, WA | KW Deterrence experience, vessels, monitoring, HAZWOPER, ICS training- wildlife branch director. | 1 | Oil Spill Team 24/7 Pager | oilspillteam@dfw.wa.gov | https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/habitat-recovery/spill-prevention |
| Wild Orca | San Juan Island, WA | Cetacean expertise, vessels, monitoring, KW Deterrence experience. | 1 | Deborah Giles | giles@wildorca.org | https://www.wildorca.org/ |
* Where a Tier 1 Primary Response Organization is one with whale expertise and whose personnel have undergone regular training and drills to
ensure they are prepared in the event of a spill event.