Speaking of whales, in an historic decision the Federal Court of Appeal has ruled that the federal minister of fisheries has no discretion when it comes to protecting the critical habitat of B.C.'s southern resident killer whales.
According to a report by the CBC, "The case stems from the plight of southern B.C.'s iconic marine mammal. At last count, there were 87 animals left in the southern orca population that lives in and around Vancouver Island and the Southern Gulf Islands. The group was listed as endangered under the Species at Risk Act in 2003. Fisheries and Oceans came up with a plan to protect the whales and their critical habitat, but left certain elements up to the discretion of the minister. The court said all elements of the plan must be enshrined in law. That would mean protecting chinook salmon, the whales' main food source, reducing underwater noise from boat, industrial and military activity and cleaning up toxic contamination in the whales' home ecosystem."
Unfortunately, the current federal regime has shown an alarming lack of respect for judicial decisions (or parliamentary rulings for that matter) that don't align with its narrow conservative ideology, so we shall see if the government embraces or ignores this decision. While I'm hopeful, past evidence suggests that that hope is misplaced as this report suggests that the Canadian government has failed to protect our country's marine biodiversity and has failed to meet national and international commitments to sustain marine biodiversity over many years.
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