Suspend viewing of Southern Resident orcas.

Action 1

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife should establish a whale-watching regulation that suspends Southern Resident viewing by all boats in Puget Sound for the next 3-5 years.

Action 2

The Governor should direct the department to begin rulemaking to define Washington whale watching in coordination with the commercial whale-watching industry, kayak industry, local governments, and interested nongovernment organizations. The department also should report on the effectiveness of the rule after 3-5 years.

This was not implemented to date.

Today, all vessels must stay 300 yards away from either side and 400 yards in front of and behind Southern Residents and must slow down to 7 knots within a half nautical mile of the orcas (Revised Code of Washington 77.15.740).

More details may be found in the progress reports in the resources library.