After a noted emergency responder died in rescuing an endangered right whale, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it's suspending efforts to free whales that are similarly trapped by fishing lines and gear.
News of the suspension comes as the whale rescue community mourns Joe Howlett, a Canadian who died during a rescue operation on Monday. Howlett, a former fisherman and boat captain, had founded a whale rescue team and was based in Campobello Island, just across the border from Lubec, Maine.
Howlett died after freeing a right whale in Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence. At the time, he was aboard a fast response vessel and had just cut the whale loose — an operation that often involves using long poles with blades on the end to sever crab floats and fishing lines that have become wrapped around the large mammals.
"His colleagues reported that he was struck by the animal as it sped away," Maine Public Radio reports.
[The Maine Public Radio story notes "There are believed to be just 500 Right Whales remaining in the world." -Ed.]
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Several researchers working for the International Monetary Fund's Finance and Development section have written about concrete economic benefits provided by whales and their role in sequestration of atmospheric carbon. They advocate mindset recognizing the important function of oceanic ecosystems and marine life from whales and seabirds to phytoplankton. Restoring the whale populations to their pre-industrial numbers would help noticeably in mitigating climate change.
Wherever whales, the largest living things on earth, are found, so are populations of some of the smallest, phytoplankton. These microscopic creatures not only contribute at least 50 percent of all oxygen to our atmosphere, they do so by capturing about 37 billion metric tons of CO2, an estimated 40 percent of all CO2 produced. To put things in perspective, we calculate that this is equivalent to the amount of CO2 captured by 1.70 trillion trees—four Amazon forests’ worth—or 70 times the amount absorbed by all the trees in the US Redwood National and State Parks each year. More phytoplankton means more carbon capture.
In recent years, scientists have discovered that whales have a multiplier effect of increasing phytoplankton production wherever they go. How? It turns out that whales’ waste products contain exactly the substances—notably iron and nitrogen—phytoplankton need to grow. Whales bring minerals up to the ocean surface through their vertical movement, called the “whale pump,” and through their migration across oceans, called the “whale conveyor belt.” Preliminary modeling and estimates indicate that this fertilizing activity adds significantly to phytoplankton growth in the areas whales frequent.
Earlier on SN:
We Can Tell Where a Whale has Travelled from the Themes in its Song (2019)
Oceans Warming 40% Faster than Previously Predicted (2019)
Japan Restarting Commercial Whaling, Ignoring Global Moratorium (2018)
Ocean Circulation in North Atlantic at its Weakest (2018)
How Cruise Ships Bring Agonising Death to Last Greek Whales (2018)
NOAA Halts Whale Disentanglement Efforts After Rescue Operation Death (2017)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @01:21PM (1 child)
Sam Wheat: How long have you been here?
Subway Ghost: Since they pushed me.
Sam Wheat: Someone pushed you?
Subway Ghost: Yeah, someone pushed me.
Sam Wheat: Who?
Subway Ghost: What, you don't believe me? You think I fell? You think I jumped? Well, fuck you! It wasn't my time! I wasn't supposed to go! I'm not supposed to be here!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @04:09PM
You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talking... you talking to me? Well I'm the only one here. Who the fuck do you think you're talking to? Oh yeah? OK.
Henry Hill: You're a pistol, you're really funny. You're really funny.
Tommy DeVito: What do you mean I'm funny?
Henry Hill: It's funny, you know. It's a good story, it's funny, you're a funny guy.
[laughs]
Tommy DeVito: What do you mean, you mean the way I talk? What?
Henry Hill: It's just, you know. You're just funny, it's... funny, you know the way you tell the story and everything.
Tommy DeVito: [it becomes quiet] Funny how? What's funny about it?
Anthony Stabile: Tommy no, you got it all wrong.
Tommy DeVito: Oh, oh, Anthony. He's a big boy, he knows what he said. What did ya say? Funny how?
Henry Hill: Jus...
Tommy DeVito: What?
Henry Hill: Just... ya know... you're funny.
Tommy DeVito: You mean, let me understand this cause, ya know maybe it's me, I'm a little fucked up maybe, but I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I'm here to fuckin' amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny?
Henry Hill: Just... you know, how you tell the story, what?
Tommy DeVito: No, no, I don't know, you said it. How do I know? You said I'm funny. How the fuck am I funny, what the fuck is so funny about me? Tell me, tell me what's funny!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @02:28PM (2 children)
Died doing what he loved.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @02:43PM
Fixed that for you.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @03:24PM
Respect
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 16 2017, @02:32PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wux1bWDtzs [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by lx on Sunday July 16 2017, @04:20PM
Right whales rather die than being saved by a lefty tree-hugger. [youtube.com]
(Score: 4, Insightful) by frojack on Sunday July 16 2017, @10:01PM
There's no shortage of humans. Everybody back in the boats.
Oh, too soon? My bad.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 17 2017, @12:26AM
http://theexplodingwhale.com/evidence/newspaper-1970/rg-1970-11-23/ [theexplodingwhale.com]