The News Tribune posted the following article:
“Whale-watching industry is growing despite distance restrictions, according to study
BY LYNDA V. MAPES
Seattle Times
Restrictions on vessel traffic have helped keep more boaters farther from critically endangered southern-resident killer whales, while not harming the whale-watch industry, a new study has found.
Federal restrictions enacted in 2011 require whale-watch boats and other vessels to stay at least 200 yards away from orca whales. That’s a long way — two football-field lengths — and doubled the buffer. Yet whale-watch tourism continues to grow, the technical memorandum from NOAA found.
Lack of food — namely salmon in Puget Sound — as well as high levels of contaminants in their environment, and disturbance by vessel noise are the primary threats identified by the agency to the Puget Sound orcas’ survival.”
Read more here: http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article191681624.html#storylink=cpy