The move is being made as the government readies for a decision on the approval of the Northern Gateway pipeline, which would feed oil onto a tanker shipping route that overlaps with what environmental groups describe as "critical habitat" for the whale.
Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq, with advice from Fisheries Minister Gail Shea, is recommending that the Northern Pacific population of humpback whales be downgraded from "threatened" to "species of special concern." The recommendation for the change to the Species at Risk Act was published in the Canada Gazette Saturday.
The government is accepting responses to the recommendation for 30 days following publication. After that, the change would go into effect immediately once approved by the Governor-in-Council.
The change would mean:
There would no longer be a requirement to protect the whale's critical habitat.
Other "general prohibitions" under the act would no longer apply.
In a statement supporting the recommendation, the government noted that the whale population has increased "significantly" since it was first listed as threatened in 2005. It added that a 2011 assessment by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) showed the whale's population growth rates have also increased to the point where it can be reclassified as a species of special concern.
COSEWIC is an independent scientific body designated to determine the level of threat to a species and its classification under the Species at Risk Act.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/humpb ... -1.2617633
The biggest threat to the humpback whale is death by ocean vessel propellers.
Nice that the whale has made a significant comeback. Not so nice that the 250 tankers that are predicted to infest our waters will now kill this creature off for good.
Also nice that the smarmy Harper Gov't made this decision public on Earth Day. They have a knack of slapping us in the face at every opportunity.
