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WWF UK - New oil platform threatens rare whales

www.wwf.org.uk

18 January 2011

We’re astonished and disappointed to hear that Sakhalin Energy – a company part owned by Shell – is planning to build a big new oil platform near vital feeding grounds for a critically endangered population of gray whales. We want them to reconsider.
Grey whale

The western north Pacific gray whale is on the brink of disappearing forever. There are only around 130 of them left, of which only about 30 are breeding females. Losing even a few of those could mean the end for the population.

The primary feeding area for these whales – off Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East – is already besieged by oil and gas exploration and development projects. Sakhalin Energy, who already have two platforms in the area, had previously said there was no need for a third, and acknowledged that sticking with two platforms “significantly reduces the potential for environmental impact”.

There are several reasons why we’re against the new platform. The impacts on whales could include disrupted feeding and greater chances of being killed by ship collisions. Sakhalin Energy’s own studies from ten years ago also show the proposed area is unsuitable because of unstable seabed clay in what is an earthquake-prone area.

And, of course, additional oil exploration will increase the risk of an environmentally catastrophic oil spill in this sensitive habitat.

Impacts of seismic testing on whales
Sakhalin Energy plans to conduct a seismic survey this summer to determine where to begin building the platform. This involves shooting loud pulses of noise into the ocean floor to detect oil deposits.

Three seismic surveys were conducted in the area last summer, causing severe pressure on the whales (read a preliminary report on the seismic survey done by Rosneft). Noise from these surveys can be devastating for species such as gray whales that rely on sound to navigate, communicate and find food.

We still don’t know the full extent of the impact – and won’t know until the whales return to their feeding grounds this year and scientists can determine if any are malnourished. It’s totally inappropriate for Sakhalin Energy to plan another survey before we have that information.

About the Pacific gray whales
Gray whales are found on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, but the critically endangered western population is officially classed as separate from the eastern whales. Genetic studies indicate that the two populations probably don’t mix.

The western population depend on the waters off Sakhalin Island for their survival. The shallow waters make this one of the only places where mother whales can teach their calves to feed on the seabed. During feeding season the whales must consume enough to maintain themselves for the rest of the year, when they migrate great distances to their breeding grounds.