The good news is that boaters will now be required to stay at least 200 yards distant from Puget Sound orca whales, under new rules issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service.
However, NMFS decided to not make the waters west of San Juan Island a no-go area in summer time, bowing to local objections including marine dependent businesses. In other words, not having a no-go was based on commerce, not science.
If this compromise is how it's going to be, then it is incumbent on businesses to develop its own code of conduct that will not cause orcas "to speed up travel and respiration, which burns more energy and inhibits feeding."
Eco-tourism whale watch companies: what are you going to do if you love the whales to death?
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