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A Baby Humpback Whale Plays Near the Surface in Blue Water

New report by Deloitte and WDC does a deep dive into the opportunities for businesses in embracing oceanic biodiversity

Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) and Deloitte have released a new report that shines a...
Nets set in Norway to catch minke whales

Minke whale dies before cruel hearing experiments begin

Nets set in Norway to catch minke whales A cruel and pointless experiment to test...
WDC joins local protesters on anti whaling march in Iceland

Pressure mounts in Iceland as latest survey shows majority of local people want whale hunting to end

WDC joins local protesters on anti whaling march in Iceland For the first time, those...

New government marine wildlife code to help reduce dolphin disturbance

The launch today by UK Government of new guidance on how to act responsibly around...
All policy news
  • All policy news
  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Prevent deaths in nets
  • Stop whaling
  • Strandings
Sperm whale © Douglas Hoffman

Featured policy news item

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nunc magna elit, gravida at lectus vitae,...
sea_world_orlando_rob_lott

Holiday giant Thomas Cook stops selling tickets to Seaworld and Loro Parque

Holiday giant Thomas Cook stops selling tickets to Seaworld and Loro Parque Following a three...

Endangered Southern Resident orca loses newborn calf

In heartbreaking news from the Pacific Northwest, the Center for Whale Research has reported that...
srkw_shoup_2003_text

U.S. Defense Bill weakens protections for whales

24 July 2018, Plymouth, MA: The FY2019 National Defense Authorization Act conference report was released...

Doubts remain after Icelandic Marine Institute claims slaughtered whale was a hybrid not a blue

Experts remain sceptical of initial test results issued by the Icelandic Marine Institute, which indicate...
f0k5103-2

Did Icelandic whalers really kill a blue whale?

*Warning - this blog contains an image that you may find upsetting* They say a...
iron_gate_dam_klamath

One step closer to more salmon for endangered Southern Resident orcas

On June 28, 2018, the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC) filed “The Definite Plan” for...
monodon_monoceros-wdc3

Narwhals and Bowhead whales threatened by new Arctic shipping routes

A NASA-funded study has warned that marine creatures like whales and dolphins will be exposed...
japanese_whaling_2005_-_minke_whales_credit_jeremy_sutton-hibbert_for_use_until_28.2.17_1

Japan set to resume commercial whaling

Reports from Japan suggest that the government they will formally propose plans to resume commercial...
hvalfjordur_035

Iceland flouts international ban to slaughter first protected fin whale of new hunting season

Icelandic whaling company Hvalur hf has slaughtered an endangered fin whale today in defiance of...
l92_dave_ellifrit_cwr

Southern Resident orca L92 missing as community returns to the Salish Sea

We are very sad to share news announced today by the Center for Whale Research...
whale_alert_flag_san_juan_county

New actions in the Northwest to help Southern Resident orcas and salmon

As the Washington State Task Force starts to examine threats to the endangered Southern Resident...
All news
  • All news
  • About whales & dolphins
  • Corporates
  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Green Whale
  • Prevent deaths in nets
  • Scottish Dolphin Centre
  • Stop whaling
  • Stranding
  • Whale watching
A Baby Humpback Whale Plays Near the Surface in Blue Water

New report by Deloitte and WDC does a deep dive into the opportunities for businesses in embracing oceanic biodiversity

Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) and Deloitte have released a new report that shines a...
Nets set in Norway to catch minke whales

Minke whale dies before cruel hearing experiments begin

Nets set in Norway to catch minke whales A cruel and pointless experiment to test...
WDC joins local protesters on anti whaling march in Iceland

Pressure mounts in Iceland as latest survey shows majority of local people want whale hunting to end

WDC joins local protesters on anti whaling march in Iceland For the first time, those...

New government marine wildlife code to help reduce dolphin disturbance

The launch today by UK Government of new guidance on how to act responsibly around...
All policy news
  • All policy news
  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Prevent deaths in nets
  • Stop whaling
  • Strandings
Sperm whale © Douglas Hoffman

Featured policy news item

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nunc magna elit, gravida at lectus vitae,...
sea_world_orlando_rob_lott

Holiday giant Thomas Cook stops selling tickets to Seaworld and Loro Parque

Holiday giant Thomas Cook stops selling tickets to Seaworld and Loro Parque Following a three...

Endangered Southern Resident orca loses newborn calf

In heartbreaking news from the Pacific Northwest, the Center for Whale Research has reported that...
srkw_shoup_2003_text

U.S. Defense Bill weakens protections for whales

24 July 2018, Plymouth, MA: The FY2019 National Defense Authorization Act conference report was released...

Doubts remain after Icelandic Marine Institute claims slaughtered whale was a hybrid not a blue

Experts remain sceptical of initial test results issued by the Icelandic Marine Institute, which indicate...
f0k5103-2

Did Icelandic whalers really kill a blue whale?

*Warning - this blog contains an image that you may find upsetting* They say a...
iron_gate_dam_klamath

One step closer to more salmon for endangered Southern Resident orcas

On June 28, 2018, the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC) filed “The Definite Plan” for...
monodon_monoceros-wdc3

Narwhals and Bowhead whales threatened by new Arctic shipping routes

A NASA-funded study has warned that marine creatures like whales and dolphins will be exposed...
japanese_whaling_2005_-_minke_whales_credit_jeremy_sutton-hibbert_for_use_until_28.2.17_1

Japan set to resume commercial whaling

Reports from Japan suggest that the government they will formally propose plans to resume commercial...
hvalfjordur_035

Iceland flouts international ban to slaughter first protected fin whale of new hunting season

Icelandic whaling company Hvalur hf has slaughtered an endangered fin whale today in defiance of...
l92_dave_ellifrit_cwr

Southern Resident orca L92 missing as community returns to the Salish Sea

We are very sad to share news announced today by the Center for Whale Research...
whale_alert_flag_san_juan_county

New actions in the Northwest to help Southern Resident orcas and salmon

As the Washington State Task Force starts to examine threats to the endangered Southern Resident...

Limits on damaging fishing methods could help the economy and whales

A report issued today, and backed by WDC, states that placing proportionate limits on some types of fishing could help boost long-term jobs in fragile Scottish rural communities, as well as protect the environment.

The Scottish government is due to announce measures for managing fishing in several Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) later this month. The new report indicates that, if the government ends certain bottom-towed fishing methods (mechanical dredges and weighted demersal trawl nets) which damage protected fragile seabed habitats, there could be substantial knock-on benefits for local economies.

Over several decades the health of Scotland’s inshore seas has declined and yet, until now, there have been few attempts to manage and so allow these important inshore areas to recover.

Management proposals have been criticised in recent months, but environmental groups have carefully considered concerns expressed about the economic impacts of curtailing prawn-trawling and scallop dredging in MPAs. When considering hypothetical scenarios in which bottom-towed fishing is excluded from protected areas, the new report (commissioned by the Marine Conservation Society, MCS) concluded that rather than damaging the local economy, such measures could potentially provide substantial net benefits to coastal communities, for example by providing new opportunities for other forms of fishing and commercial marine activities.

The report authors argue that some previous analysis has not considered the major commercial significance of the “spillover effect”, where fish and shellfish stocks recover within protected areas and then move out beyond MPA boundaries, as well as allowing other activities to thrive in areas previously subjected to trawling or dredging.

Management developed specifically to protect and recover important seabed habitats would have knock-on benefits for all habitats and species below the waves, including Scotland’s largest filter-feeders, such as humpback whales, minke whales and basking sharks.