Feds designates critical whale habitat areas in Alaska and the West Coast
Posted by Angela Denning | Apr 21, 2021
Critical habitat for three populations of humpback whales in Alaska and the West Coast/NOAA
The National Marine Fisheries Service Wednesday published a final rule designating critical habitat for three populations of humpback whales including some areas in Alaska. The federal ruling affects the eastern Aleutians, Kodiak, Prince Williams Sound, as well as the coastlines of Washington, Oregon, and California. As KFSK’s Angela Denning reports from Petersburg, the ruling excludes Bristol Bay and Southeast Alaska.
The rule establishes about 116,000 square nautical miles of protected area for the endangered Western North Pacific and Central American populations of humpback whales and the threatened Mexico population.