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AFCD reports on investigation findings into cause of death of Bryde’s whale in Sai Kung last year – SAI KUNG BUZZ

AFCD reports on investigation findings into cause of death of Bryde’s whale in Sai Kung last year – SAI KUNG BUZZ

The carcass of the whale floating off the coast of Shelter Island Photos: HK01

The Marine Mammal Conservation Expert Group met yesterday (19/7). The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation (AFCD) reported on the findings of the investigation into the cause of death of the Bryde’s whale that surfaced in Hong Kong waters in July last year. The progress of the government’s work on marine mammal conservation was also discussed.

After extensive study of the report of the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong (OPCFHK) commissioned by the AFCD last year to investigate the cause of death of the Bryde’s whale, as well as the opinions of two experts from Australia and Spain, the Expert Group noted that the Bryde’s whale was hit by a fast-moving vessel between the morning of July 30 and the morning of July 31 last year, causing injuries to the animal’s back and spine, and causing its immediate death. The type of vessel involved could not be determined in the analysis. However, no whale watching activity was detected during the four days prior to the death of the Bryde’s whale. Furthermore, fishing boats generally do not travel at such high speeds, and fishing boats and speedboats equipped with outboard motors could not cause such serious injuries. Therefore, the injuries were more likely caused by other types of vessels.

Whales are not a resident species in Hong Kong waters per se. Their entry into Hong Kong waters is likely due to special circumstances, such as health problems, disorientation or young whales being separated from their caretakers. The international principle in dealing with such situations is to avoid human disturbance as much as possible, to increase monitoring and patrols and to allow the whales to swim back to suitable habitats on their own and with minimal disturbance as much as possible.

An AFCD spokesperson said: “Between the first sighting of the Bryde’s whale in the waters of Sai Kung last year until its death, the AFCD worked with the OPCFHK and local and mainland marine conservation experts to closely monitor the whale’s health and consider appropriate measures to protect its safety, and worked with relevant government departments to advise the public not to go out to sea for whale watching and water activities in the relevant waters. On 29 July and 30 July, the AFCD further coordinated with relevant government departments to take special administrative measures to establish a management area in the waters frequented by the whale, where patrols were stepped up and all vessels entering the area were requested to leave immediately.

“Based on the experience of this incident, the department has strengthened its work in four areas, including formulating a response plan with relevant departments to deal with similar incidents in the future, reviewing the relevant powers of the AFCD under current legislation, sending personnel to the mainland and overseas to learn about marine mammal protection measures and apply them to the response plan, and taking measures to increase public awareness and knowledge of conservation, etc.”

Since July last year, the AFCD has followed up on the above four aspects as follows:

(1) Formulate a response plan: Referring to the opinions of local, mainland and foreign experts, as well as the actual local situation, the Government has formulated a response plan based on different scenarios in which non-resident cetaceans appear in Hong Kong waters. The plan provides guidelines for inter-departmental coordination and response actions, specifying the specific roles and actions of relevant departments in monitoring, on-site operations, support and dissemination of information to the public, with a view to handling similar situations more quickly and effectively in the future. In particular, the AFCD, together with the Marine Department and the Marine Police, has tried out the principles and procedures of the response plan in dealing with a whale sighting case in Southern District in September last year, where rapid deployment and actions were taken in monitoring, patrolling and dissemination of information, with good results. The Government will listen to the advice of the Expert Group and will also maintain communication with relevant organizations and experts to ensure that the response plan meets actual needs and is kept up to date;

(2) Legal review: The Government has reviewed the relevant legislation for the protection of marine mammals and tentatively proposed that the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation should be given greater powers to deal with exceptional circumstances, including the expeditious designation of temporary restriction areas where necessary through simplified procedures, and the imposition of restrictions on shipping and relevant activities within such areas. These measures are aimed at providing greater protection and a safe environment, as well as reducing human disturbance to species that accidentally enter local waters, such as whales that are not normally found in Hong Kong waters. The Government also proposed that whale watching should be prohibited to avoid stressing whales and endangering their health and safety. The Government expects to consult the Expert Group on the specific proposals for the relevant legislative amendments this year;

(3) Exchange with experienced agencies: The AFCD has previously sent staff to the Beibu Gulf Cetacean Research and Protection Centre in Beihai, Guangxi, and Southern Marine Parks, Queensland, Australia, to exchange and learn from experiences in dealing with stranded marine mammals; legislation, management and research on the protection of such animals; as well as public communication, publicity and education, such as how to observe the health status of wild whales and respond to reports of whale sightings under a tiered mechanism, etc. The department has appropriately applied these relevant experiences in their follow-up work, such as formulating a response plan and legislative review, etc.; and

(4) Enhance publicity and education: Regarding the whale sighting in Southern District last September, the AFCD immediately issued press releases and social media posts and distributed leaflets at nearby piers to urge the public not to go out to sea to watch whales, while the Marine Department also called on ships to reduce their speed through a broadcast system. The overall response was satisfactory. The AFCD also carried out a series of public education activities, targeting not only the general public but also students and teachers, to deepen their understanding of Hong Kong’s marine environment and wildlife and raise their awareness of respecting, caring for and appreciating marine resources. Among other things, the AFCD organised the Marine Wildlife Appreciation Festival from January to March this year to promote the message of marine conservation to the public. The department will also continue to strengthen its work to mainstream the awareness of marine conservation in the future.

The Expert Group acknowledged the Department’s progress in the four aspects of the work and discussed the response plan in detail. The AFCD will take into account the views of the Expert Group when dealing with similar situations in the future, and will continue to work with the Expert Group to continuously improve the response measures.

The Expert Group is responsible for advising the Government on the conservation of marine mammals in Hong Kong waters, including developing a response plan for dealing with sightings of non-resident marine mammals in Hong Kong waters, assessing the associated potential risks and formulating appropriate measures, guidelines, protocols and best practices, etc. A list of its members can be found in the Annex.

Relevant documents of the Expert Group meeting, including the reports and opinions of the AFCD, the OPCFHK and the two foreign experts regarding the cause of death of the Bryde’s whale, have been uploaded to the AFCD webpage (www.afcd.gov.hk/english/conservation/con_mar/con_mar_chi/con_mar_chi_chi/con_mar_chi_chi_rep.html) for public inspection.