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Chapter Campaigns 2002 --------------- Sprawl & Transportation Public Lands & Open Space Marine & Coastal Habitat --------------- Political Legislative Conservation --------------- Mt. Wachusett Northern Right Whale N/S Rail Link Mt. Greylock Mass Military Reservation ---------------

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The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has enacted three new regulations intended to protect the northern right whale, effective February and March 2002.

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This marine mammal is large, slow, curious, and lives along the coast. The whale is easy to spot, and floats once killed, making it a prime target for whalers into the early twentieth century. The population of the Northern Right Whale was depleted so rapidly due to whaling that by the early 1900s it was no longer economically viable to hunt. Since then, the Northern Right Whale has still not bounced back from the brink of extinction, and in the 1970s, it was declared an endangered species. Today there are an estimated 300 Northern Right Whales left. Despite extensive research done on the in the last 20 years, valid policies have yet to be implemented by Federal, State, or local governments to protect the whale or its habitat.

Two major factors cause whale fatalities. An average of two to three whales are killed each year by either vessel strikes or entanglement in fishing gear- two whales more than allowed by federal law. Churchill was one of the entangled whales, and researchers believe Churchill died despite repeated efforts to rescue this breeding male.
Although the Northern Right Whale has been listed as an endangered species for decades, no recovery plan has been adopted that adequately protects the species. Recently, however, a recovery plan has been created that calls for more research on whale habitat and feeding and breeding areas, but still more action needs to be taken. Research without action is useless.