Seattle, WA. July 15, 2024: Whale detections from a popular Puget Sound whale sightings network now feed into a transboundary alert system, dramatically increasing commercial mariner awareness of nearby whales.
The Whale Report Alert System (WRAS), is a free app available for commercial mariners. It sends real-time alerts to mariners when they are within 10 nautical miles of a confirmed whale. With this information, mariners can alter their course or slow their speeds to reduce their impact on whales.
WRAS was developed and is operated by the global conservation organization, Ocean Wise. Until recently, most whale sightings reported to WRAS were from Canada, with relatively few in Washington waters, mainly from Washington State Ferries.
Connecting a popular whale sightings network to the alert system
Orca Network, a Washington State non-governmental organization, manages a popular whale sighting network in Puget Sound and throughout the endangered Southern Resident killer whale’s range. Whale sightings are collected through Facebook, phone and email.
“Orca Network utilizes a network of citizen scientists, staff, volunteers, organizations, and agencies to collect whale sightings through a collaborative community effort. The success of the Whale Sighting Network relies on these cooperative relationships,” says Rachel Haight, Whale Sightings Network Co-Coordinator at Orca Network.
Sightings are vetted by Orca Network staff and other experts and submitted into digital mapping systems built by Conserve.io.
“Puget Sound is part of the critical habitat for endangered Southern Resident killer whales. Orca Network’s Whale Sighting Network documents their movement and behavior in this area, which informs management decisions and conservation efforts like Quiet Sound,” says Serena Tierra, Whale Sightings Network Co-Coordinator at Orca Network.
Quiet Sound, a Washington Maritime Blue program focused on reducing impacts of commercial shipping on the endangered Southern Resident killer whales, has been working since 2021 to improve the usability of WRAS for mariners transiting WA waters. Quiet Sound worked with Orca Network, Ocean Wise, and the Acartia data cooperative to support the creation of a technical connection and process for sending Orca Network data to WRAS.
“Puget Sound is lucky to not only have so many passionate community scientists dedicated to observing whale presence, but organizations like Orca Network who verify and record that data. We knew that if we could bring these whale sightings into WRAS, it would become immediately more relevant for Washington professional mariners”, says Rachel Aronson, Program Director at Quiet Sound.
To plug Orca Network’s sightings into the alert system, Ocean Wise developed a new API for WRAS. Open-source developers with Acartia, led by Ali Alayrus, connected the local sightings network to WRAS via the Acartia data cooperative.
“Acartia is a decentralized data cooperative designed for sharing locations of marine mammals in the Salish Sea, and from California to Alaska. Through its public API, Acartia provides open access to real-time and archived data collected by community scientists for end users in Washington, and now in Canada, as well.” says Scott Veirs, President of Beam Reach Marine Science and Sustainability.
Exponential increase in sightings and alerts to mariners
Since integrating Orca Network’s data in October 2023, there has been an exponential increase in sightings and subsequent alerts to mariners. More than 75% of whale sightings submitted from Washington to WRAS in April 2024 came from Orca Network via Acartia. In April, 467 sightings from Washington state led to 1500 alerts, a 1000% increase from last April (one whale sighting can lead to multiple alerts if multiple commercial mariners are in the area).
“This is a fantastic example of transboundary collaboration – multiple partners came together to provide mariners transiting between Washington and Canada with a seamless notification experience,” says Alex Mitchell, Whale Report Alert System Manager at Ocean Wise.
It’s important to note that WRAS is only available to professional mariners. Mariners can email WRAS@ocean.org to apply for approval to download the app and receive real-time alerts from WRAS.
Future collaborations might connect other local whale sightings networks in other parts of Washington.
June is Orca Action Month
Members of the public are encouraged to participate in their local sightings networks, such as Orca Network, and listen to detect whales live underwater on orcasound.net.
Killer whale spotted Saturday north of Orcas Island. (Photo: Robert Pollock)
Killer whale spotted north of Orcas Island. (Photo: Robert Pollock)
The newest J pod orca whale calf, J59, is a girl (Photo: Center for Whale Research)
K45 seen swimming in Puget Sound on Nov. 10 (Photo: Jami Cantrell / KOMO #SoNorthwest Photography)
Inslee and whale advocates celebrate progress made in protecting orcas in Puget Sound
by KOMO News Staff
SEATTLE, Wash. —Gov. Jay Inslee and the Quiet Sound program celebrated the progress made in protecting orcas in Puget Sound on Friday at the Seattle Aquarium.
The Quiet Sound has been advocating for increased funding for salmon habitat restoration efforts, eliminating toxic pollution, and reducing underwater noise and disturbances.
Noise from ships poses a threat to the whales as orcas primarily use sound — including echolocation — to hunt for food, orient and communicate. Ship noise can mask the whale calls, effectively blinding the mammals. The population of resident killer whales in the waters of the Pacific Northwest and southwestern British Columbia has declined to 73 individuals.
“I think we can celebrate that in the first year of the Quiet Sound we’ve got 69% voluntary compliance of our ships coming in to a quiet Puget Sound,” Inslee said. “Isn’t that a great achievement in the first year?”
Washington state is part of the Quiet Sound trial program on the voluntary slowdown for container ships, tankers, freighters, cruise ships and car carriers.
The slowdown is estimated to add between 10 minutes to 20 minutes of ships’ travel time, depending on their usual speed. Vehicle carriers, cruise ships, and container vessels are being asked to travel 14.5 knots or less and bulkers and tankers are being asked to travel 11 knots or less.
Canadian and American government agencies have identified physical and acoustic disturbance as one of the key threats to the survival of the fish-eating killer whales, along with a lack of prey and water pollution.
The Quiet Sound was also able to help pass the National Defense Authorization Act at the federal level.
It gives the coast guard the opportunity to help reduce conflicts between ships and whales.
A pair of orca whales swim in view of a state ferry crossing from Bainbridge Island toward Seattle in the Puget Sound on Oct. 29, 2013. A new University of Washington study of underwater noise finds that killer whales are bothered more by a fast boat than a large one or by a number of them in close proximity.
Quiet Sound aims to expand efforts to protect endangered orcas from marine traffic
Underwater noise from vessel traffic is one of the key threats to Puget Sound’s endangered orca population. It interferes with the killer whales’ ability to find increasingly scarce salmon. A new initiative is underway to alert ship operators when whales are near so they can slow down.
A recommendation from Gov. Jay Inslee’s Orca Recovery Task Force led to the creation ofQuiet Sound.The program — part of the Port of Seattle-funded nonprofit Maritime Blue — is working to expand voluntary participation ina whale report alert systemthat’s already used in Canada and by Washington State Ferries. It’s an app that can be used on a smartphone or a desktop computer.
“That can let a pilot know if there is a fresh whale sighting within 10 nautical miles of them,” says Rachel Aronson, Quiet Sound’s newly appointed program director.
“And at that point, the pilot or the master of the vessel can choose to take a protective measure,” such as slowing down or changing course. She says when large vessels slow down to 11-14 knots, itreduces the underwater noise they create by about 50 percent.
“So for a relatively minimal slowdown, there’s a pretty big noise benefit,” she says.
It not only lessens the interference with the whale’s ability to hunt, but it also reduces stress — all of which scientists say could help with reproductive success and longevity of the endangered whales’ population, which now number just 73.
Aronson is working to establish voluntary slow-down zones in areas of Puget Sound that are frequented by whales.Quiet Sound will be taking input from representatives in commercial shipping and maritime transportation next month to plan a trial of the system.
She says that kind of inclusive planning has been a key to the success of Canada’sECHO program, which started about five years ago andclaims participation rates of 80-90 percentfrom commercial vessels in busy Port of Vancouver waters.
“And they’ve gotten to that point by involving vessel representatives from the beginning, being based on science and data and showing their results to the pilots, masters, and vessel representatives as they go along,” Aronson says. “And that’s the approach we’re going to take at Quiet Sound.”
The U.S. Navy is also partnering with Quiet Sound as it looks for new technologies to help keep oceans safe for marine mammals.A new U.S. Navy challengecalls on entrepreneurs and inventors everywhere to develop a device that can autonomously detect the presence of southern resident orcas in Puget Sound and Northern Atlantic right whales on the East Coast.
The winning designers will be awarded up to $75,000 dollars. The challenge is specifically for devices that would attach to unmanned vessels, which are expected to proliferate over the next decade.
“I mean, protecting the marine mammals, being able to navigate in accordance with the rules of the road and Coast Guard regulations and the state regulations — if we don’t do it, then these systems, they won’t deploy,” says Johannes Schonberg, director of engagement with the U.S. Navy Lab in Keyport.
Schonberg says the Navy has very strict protocols that protect marine mammals; those include having human lookouts on every ship. New technology needs to meet or exceed those standards.
Data from the Navy could also ultimately flow into the current whale alert system, though he predicts at some point newer technology will replace it.
Quiet Sound is also working with a number of nonprofits who have developed their own whale-detection systems over the years, such as Whidbey Island-basedOrca Network.Co-founder Susan Berta says work and “fine tuning” are underway to allow the Whale Alert App to accept reports from their network.
Quiet Sound’s Aronson says it’s one of several systems that already use networked hydrophones and other technology to raise awareness for the whales and their specific whereabouts. What’s missing is a central convener.
“In a lot of ways, the pieces of the puzzle — a lot of those pieces were out there. But there was no one place that brought them all together,” she says.
It may take a couple of years to get there, Aronson says, but Quiet Sound wants to be the solution.
Quiet Sound Officially Launches Underwater Noise-Reduction Initiatives to Save Southern Resident Killer WhalesBringing together Washington’s maritime community to diminish noise impacts on endangered Southern Resident killer whales, Quiet Sound kicks off its first year of projects.
SEATTLE, WA (February 3, 2022) – Quiet Sound, a collaborative program working to reduce noise and physical impacts to endangered Southern Resident killer whales from large commercial vessels, announces the official launch of its initiatives and monitoring programs, with the first meeting of its Leadership Committee held on January 27.
Quiet Sound received its initial funding and began organizing for this official launch in 2021. Quiet Sound is the primary, collaborative initiative in Washington state addressing the impacts of noise on local whale populations. Their focus is on giving commercial mariners and large vessels the resources to join together in a voluntary effort to slow down, reducing underwater noise pollution and protecting the 73 Southern Resident killer whales in the Salish Sea.
“We are eager to quickly build momentum behind our noise-reduction initiatives and monitoring programs to create a win-win solution where ferries, cruise ships, large vessels, and others on the water can coexist with our resident whales and ensure the future of this endangered species,” said Rachel Aronson, Quiet Sound Program Director. “We have encouraging partnerships in the works touching every aspect of the maritime industry and collaborative programs we will continue to roll out throughout the year.”
Quiet Sound is working in partnership with the tribal governments, state and federal agencies, scientific researchers, nonprofits, and other maritime industry organizations to initiate an advanced whale alert system and vessel slow down initiative to protect one of the whale species’ most valuable assets: communication. Diminished underwater noise means improved orca communication, protecting their ability to hunt and mate – empowering the acutely endangered species to thrive.
“Southern Resident killer whales are a key indicator of the overall health of Puget Sound and an important part of the NWIFC member tribes’ cultures,” said Randy Lumper, Puget Sound Policy Analyst of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. “ We are excited to be part of the collaboration with Quiet Sound on this critical noise-reduction initiative in support of recovering our Southern Resident killer whales.”
“We’re excited to be part of the founding leadership of this initiative to reduce underwater noise to improve the environment for Southern Resident killer whales,” said Mike Moore of Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. “ Environmental stewardship is important to mariners who are willing to implement voluntary actions when there are measurable benefits. We also look forward to collaborating with our Canadian neighbors.”
Large vessels and vessel operations centers are asked to use the Whale Report Alert System, available as a mobile app or in a browser, providing real-time, geographically specific alerts of whale sightings. These alerts can enable vessels to take measures that are safe for humans and for the whales, such as slowing down, stopping, posting a lookout, or taking an alternate route. Quiet Sound is engaging Washington sightings networks to provide a more complete real-time picture of whale locations for mariners.
Immediate next steps for Quiet Sound include partnering with Oceans Initiative to engage Puget Sound boaters in underwater noise measurements and advising the Port of Seattle on a research initiative on what is needed to further develop Washington’s underwater noise sensing network. Quiet Sound will also partner with the U.S. Navy’s Northwest Tech Bridge on a technology challenge to support innovators in developing new onboard whale sensing capabilities for vessels underway.
