Frozen waste – missed opportunity to address deep concerns over Norway’s ‘snorkel-with-orcas’ tours

It is important to note too, that outside the Tromsø region, guidelines relate solely to snorkelling with orcas and only in certain locations or times of year. They strongly discourage swimming, diving or free-diving with orcas or any other whale species, such as humpbacks: yet this advice is routinely ignored. Only last week, I saw social media posts of a diver with a humpback calf off Skjervøy, northeast of Tromsø.

But let’s hope that this free-for-all is coming to an end. Last spring, the Norwegian Fisheries Directorate declared its intention to put regulations in place and invited input from a number of stakeholders - including us - following what they described as a series of conflicts and potentially dangerous situations.

The problem is that orcas, the focal species for most snorkellers, are naturally attracted to fishing boats, in the hope of snatching herring from the nets. Snorkellers follow the orcas, but may find themselves dangerously close to the fishing boats. A spokesperson recently commented: ‘The Directorate of Fisheries, the coast guard and the fishing fleet have observed people swimming just metres from moving vessels. This poses a major risk to safety.’ There have been calls too, for any vessels putting people in the water to be clearly flagged, so that fishing boats and other vessels are aware of people in the water.

Last month, Rolf Harald Jensen, Director of the Maritime Service of the Northern Fisheries Directorate, blasted ‘dive with orca’ tours after further dangerous incidents around fishing boats, saying: ‘We have a clear strategy that we do not go in the water with these animals because of safety. There should be no people in the water. We believe it is not justifiable, and there are a number of countries that already follow such regulations… we are genuinely worried that things will go wrong. It also makes the work situation difficult for crews on fishing boats. They need to shift their focus away from what they are actually doing and spend energy watching people who cannot take care of their own safety. Ultimately, there is a danger to life.’

He cited a recent video taken by one of his inspectors, which shows the crew of a fishing vessel turning on the vessel’s powerful vacuum pump system. Fortunately, the inspector spotted two divers swimming in pitch black conditions, perilously close to the pump. His cries alerted crew members and the pump was turned off, but this was a close call for the divers.  Jensen commented: ‘The pump is designed to suck the catch into the boat, along with water and it operates under high pressure. What comes in the immediate vicinity will be sucked up - including a diver if they get too close. In this case, they were too close. They could have gone in the pump and risked perishing.’

It is good to see that whale watch boats are now legally required to remain at least 370m from fishing vessels or fixed fishing gear, with double that distance for people in the water. This will hopefully end those high-risk interactions around fishing boats, but the regulations are otherwise disappointingly brief and lacking in detail – they appear to be focussed on protecting fishing activities rather than providing comprehensive guidance to the whale watch and dive-with-orcas industry.

Getting into the water remains risky - many trips state that no experience is necessary yet, even in dry suits, the icy Arctic waters off Norway are dangerous. The combination of deep, dark or freezing waters and strong waves may soon tire an inexperienced swimmer or trigger a pre-existing medical condition.