Posts Tagged ‘Pollution’
European Union agrees ban on some single-use plastics
Representatives from the European Union’s 28 member states have agreed to a ban on some single-use plastics, including plastic cutlery, plates and straws, as part of a plan to cut plastic pollution in the ocean and increase the use of recycled plastic. Back in May, the European Commission put forward the proposal for a European Directive…
Read MoreSuccess! Controversial plan for oil transfers between ships in important dolphin habitat dropped
A port authority in Scotland has announced that it is to drop plans to pursue a licence to transfer oil between ships in the Moray Firth. Invergordon’s Port of Cromarty Firth announced it’s decision regarding the controversial plan after campaign groups, including WDC raised the issue of potential harm to wildlife in the area. Ship-to-ship…
Read MoreTrump Administration to authorise permits to allow seismic testing in endangered North Atlantic right whale habitat
The US government has announced that it will authorise five permit requests to conduct seismic testing along the US East coast, a year-round habitat for endangered North Atlantic right whales. Seismic surveys are used to search for deposits of fossil fuels by emitting loud pulsing sounds every 10 seconds, 24 hours a day. This underwater noise pollution is…
Read MoreHalf the world’s orca populations in peril from chemical pollution
A new study released this week suggests that the futures of more than half of the different orca population groups in the ocean are in doubt and that some, like the pod located off the West Coast of Scotland, are almost certainly doomed because of the level of pollutants in the water. One of the main…
Read MoreWhat we can do to save Southern Resident orcas
We’ve been hearing from many of you that you’re heartbroken about the loss of a newborn calf in the critically endangered Southern Resident orca community – we are, too. It’s hard to put into words what it feels like to watch this tragedy unfold – sadness for the whales, angry at delayed action to save…
Read MoreGodzilla is not whale food
Elspeth Shears is a residential volunteer at the WDC Scottish Dolphin Centre in Spey Bay. Our visitor centre is on the Moray Firth, north east Scotland, home to the most northerly population of bottlenose dolphins in the world. With the Scottish sun shining up above on a beautiful Sunday in Moray, Scotland, more than 60…
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