Palau changes ocean sanctuary plan to allow Japan fishing

Yahoo – AFP, June 17, 2019

Fish stocks are overexploited around the world, the UN's Food and Agriculture
Organization has warned (AFP Photo/CHARLY TRIBALLEAU)

Koror (Palau) (AFP) - The Pacific nation of Palau has amended plans to create a huge marine reserve so Japanese fishing boats still have partial access to its waters.

Fish stocks are overexploited around the world, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization warned this year, and Palau has long been regarded as a pioneer in ocean conservation.

The island nation will close 80 percent of its exclusive economic zone -- a 500,000 square kilometre (193,000 square mile) area roughly the size of Spain -- to commercial fishing from next year.

The remaining 20 percent was to be reserved for Palau fishing boats only, but President Tommy Remengesau said Japan -- one of Palau's major foreign aid donors -- asked for the plans to be changed.

In response, the government last week passed legislation that will allow some foreign long-line vessels into the area.

Remengesau said the changes were to accommodate vessels from the southern Japanese island province of Okinawa, which have fished the waters for generations.

"We're close to Japan and we want to accommodate them where we can," Remengesau said.

Natural Resources Minister Umiich Sengebau said the changes would not undermine the sanctuary's conservation value.

"Japan has come out and actually endorsed the amendment and that's good for Japan, but it was really something we want to do for Palau to have an industry that we can sustain," he said.

The country created the world's first shark sanctuary in 2009 and will next year introduce a ban on reef-toxic sunscreens.

Remengesau said his nation -- renowned as one of the world's top diving spots -- was prioritising tourism when he announced the plan in 2015.

The tourist industry accounts for about 50 percent of the country's economy, above the tuna fishing industry.

Tokyo-based charity The Nippon Foundation donated a patrol vessel to Palau last to help prevent illegal fishing in the vast ocean reserve.

Environment group Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy, which helped formulate the blueprint for the sanctuary, said it was examining the changes introduced last week.

"While we are still working to fully analyse the legislation, we continue to support Palau as a world leader in ocean conservation," the group's senior manager Ashleigh Cirilla said.

Death in China zoo puts rarest turtle on cusp of oblivion

Yahoo – AFP, April 15, 2019

Conservationists say there are now only three other known members of the species
left (AFP Photo/STR)

Shanghai (AFP) - The world's rarest turtle has moved a step closer to extinction after a female specimen died in a Chinese zoo, leaving behind just three known members of the species.

The Yangtze giant softshell turtle, believed to be above 90 years of age, died in Suzhou Zoo on Saturday, according to the Suzhou Daily.

The female's death came a day after zoo officials made a last-ditch effort at artificial insemination using semen from the Suzhou Zoo male, an animal estimated to be more than 100 years old, the newspaper said.

The zoo had tried unsuccessfully for several years to get the pair to mate and reproduce naturally. It will now conduct an autopsy to determine what caused the animal's death, the newspaper reported.

Besides the Suzhou Zoo male there are only two other known members of the species left, both living in the wild in Vietnam and of unknown gender, according to conservationists.

The Yangtze giant softshell turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in the world, growing to 100 cm (39 inches) long and weighing up to 100kg (220 pounds).

Its main habitat was the Yangtze River and other inland China waterways.

But aquatic life in China's rivers has suffered severely from centuries of hunting and, more recently, decades of pollution, shipping traffic and ecological disruption wrought by hydroelectric dams.

As one of her last acts as president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet signed a law creating a marine conservation park of more than 250,000 square kilometres to protect the biodiversity in the Pacific Ocean's Juan Fernandez islands

As one of her last acts as president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet signed a law creating a marine conservation park of more than 250,000 square kilometres to protect the biodiversity in the Pacific Ocean's Juan Fernandez islands pic.twitter.com/OxYbLEtX6G

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 28, 2018

Obama puts Arctic Ocean off limits for drilling in last-ditch barrier to Trump

US Department of the Interior says ‘fragile and unique’ Arctic ecosystem at risk if drilling allowed, possibly by pro-fossil fuels Trump administration

The Guardian, Oliver Milman in New York, 18 November 2016

A polar bear pokes its head above the water as it swims in the Arctic
Ocean off the coast of Alaska. Photograph: Alamy

Barack Obama’s administration has ruled out drilling for oil and gas in the pristine Arctic Ocean, throwing up a last-ditch barrier to the pro-fossil fuels agenda of incoming president Donald Trump.

The US Department of the Interior said that the “fragile and unique” Arctic ecosystem would face “significant risks” if drilling were allowed in the Chukchi or Beaufort Seas, which lie off Alaska. It added that the high costs of exploration, combined with a low oil price, would probably deter fossil fuel companies anyway.

“The plan focuses lease sales in the best places – those with the highest resource potential, lowest conflict, and established infrastructure – and removes regions that are simply not right to lease,” said the interior secretary, Sally Jewell.

“Given the unique and challenging Arctic environment and industry’s declining interest in the area, forgoing lease sales in the Arctic is the right path forward.”

The move, announced as part of the federal government’s land and ocean leasing program that will run from 2017 to 2022, has been cheered by environmentalists who called for the Arctic to be put off limits for drilling to help slow climate change and avoid a catastrophic oil spill.

“Today’s announcement demonstrates a commitment to prioritizing common sense, economics and science ahead of industry favoritism and politics as usual,” said Jacqueline Savitz, Oceana’s senior vice-president for the United States.

“The decades-long push to drill in the Arctic has put this unique and diverse ecosystem at risk, cost tens of billions of dollars and created significant controversy without providing the promised benefits. We now have the opportunity to put the old arguments behind us and work together toward a sustainable future for the Arctic region.”

The removal of the Arctic Ocean from federal leasing runs contrary to Trump’s vow to “lift the Obama-Clinton roadblocks” to large fossil fuel projects and throw open vast areas of land and water to drilling. But even if Trump reverses the Arctic ban, the economics are still unfavorable for offshore drilling in the region.

Shell spent more than $7bn on its attempt to exploit oil and gas reserves in the Arctic after being allowed to do so by the US government despite a high predicted risk of an oil spill in the frigid ecosystem. The Anglo-Dutch company abandoned its drilling operation in September last year, having faced huge costs and fierce opposition from green groups.

Fossil fuel interests have eyed the Arctic as a huge new frontier for oil and gas riches, with rapidly melting sea ice making areas of the Arctic Ocean more accessible for drilling rigs. The Arctic holds about 90bn barrels of undiscovered oil and 30% of the world’s untapped natural gas.

However, the International Energy Agency has warned that the drilling in the Arctic is not yet commercially viable, while environmental groups have warned that opening up new fossil fuel development will push the planet over the precipice into catastrophic climate change.

The Arctic is at the forefront of global warming, with the region heating up at twice the rate of the rest of the planet. This summer, Arctic sea ice shrank to itssecond smallest extent ever recorded, with the annual winter regrowth occurring at a “sluggish” rate, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center. On current trends, ice is returning at a slower rate than the record low experienced in 2012.

The new federal leasing plan also makes the Atlantic off-limits to drilling, another success for environmentalists and coastal communities that fought initial plans to lease areas to fossil fuel firms. But the plan does include 10 new sales in the Gulf of Mexico, the epicenter of US offshore drilling.

The federal government, through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, currently manages around 3,400 active oil and gas leases in federal waters, covering an area spanning 18m acres.

“Today’s decision is a victory for the Arctic and demonstrates the growing strength of the movement to keep fossil fuels in the ground. But we also need to protect communities along the Gulf of Mexico,” said Marissa Knodel, a campaigner at Friends of the Earth.

“Unfortunately, Donald Trump has made it clear that he wants to return to the days of ‘drill baby drill’. That’s why President Obama must use his remaining days in office to permanently keep as much of our lands and waters from Trump and his oil cronies as possible.”

The Obama administration has pushed through a number of climate-related measures since the election of Trump, who denies climate change exists and has promised to withdraw the US from the international effort to tackle it. The president-elect also proposes cutting all funding for clean energy and to dismantle Obama’s Clean Power Plan, the main policy designed to cut emissions.

This week, the department of the interior unveiled regulations to slash fugitive emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from natural gas operations. The US was also the first nation to submit to the United Nations a plan on how it will reduce emissions, with the Obama administration setting a goal of an 80% reduction by 2050.

John Kerry, the secretary of state, said this week that climate change is “bigger than one person, one president” and that international progress on the issue was unstoppable, despite the threat of US withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.

Businesses have also stated their support for the international climate effort, with more than 360 companies, including Levi’s, Kellogg’s and Nike, urging Trump to keep up American efforts to ward off dangerous global warming.

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Deal struck for world's biggest marine reserve in Antarctica

Deal struck for world's biggest marine reserve in Antarctica

Yahoo – AFP, Martin Parry, October 28, 2016

Antartica is considered critical for scientists to study how marine ecosystems
function and to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean
(AFP Photo/Rodrigo Arangua)

Sydney (AFP) - The world's largest marine reserve aimed at protecting the pristine wilderness of Antarctica will be created after a "momentous" agreement was finally reached Friday, with Russia dropping its long-held opposition.

The deal, sealed by the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at an annual meeting in Hobart after years of negotiations, will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea.

It will cover more than 1.55 million square kilometres (600,000 square miles) -- roughly the size of Britain, Germany and France combined -- of which 1.12 million square kilometres will be a no fishing zone.

"The proposal required some changes in order to gain the unanimous support of all 25 CCAMLR members and the final agreement balances marine protection, sustainable fishing and science interests," New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said.

"The boundaries of the MPA, however, remain unchanged."

'Just the start'

The Ross Sea is one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the world, home to penguins, seals, Antarctic toothfish, whales and huge numbers of krill, a staple food for many species.

It is considered critical for scientists to study how marine ecosystems function and to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean.

Antarctic sanctuaries (AFP Photo/Laurence CHU, Gal ROMA)

Moscow was the last government opposing the move, largely due to concerns over fishing rights, after China offered its support last year.

"We had a lot of talks with them. Secretary (John) Kerry reached out to Russian President (Vladimir) Putin and (Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov and I think that helped a great deal to convince Russia to come on board," Evan Bloom, head of the US delegation at the meeting, told AFP.

"This decision is very important not just for the Antarctic but for efforts to promote world marine conservation."

Moscow has signalled more commitment to conservation in recent times, designating 2017 as the Year of Ecology. It moved in August to significantly increase the size of a protected zone around Franz Josef Land in the Arctic.

While the Ross Sea plan got the go-ahead, time ran out at the meeting to reach agreement on a second proposed protected area -- the Australia and France-led East Antarctica sanctuary covering another one million square kilometre zone.

Antarctica is home to penguins, seals, Antarctic toothfish, and whales

(AFP Photo/Eitan Abramovich)

Both reserve proposals have been on the table since 2012 with CCAMLR -- a treaty tasked with overseeing conservation and sustainable exploitation of the Antarctic Ocean, also known as the Southern Ocean.

Consensus is needed from all 24 member countries and the European Union.

A third German-proposed plan is also in the works to protect the Weddell Sea, which extends from the southeast of South America over an area of some 2.8 million square kilometres.

"For the first time, countries have put aside their differences to protect a large area of the Southern Ocean and international waters," said Mike Walker, project director of the Antarctic Ocean Alliance, calling the outcome "momentous".

"Although there was not a decision on the proposed protection of the Weddell Sea and the East Antarctic this year, we are confident that these areas will be protected in the coming years, adding to the system of marine protected areas in the Southern Ocean."

A humpback whale jumps out of the water in the western Antarctic peninsula

(AFP Photo/Eitan Abramovich)

The Ross Sea is named after British explorer Sir James Ross and his great, great, great granddaughter Phillipa Ross said the family was thrilled it was safeguarded.

"The Ross family are euphoric that our family legacy has been honoured in the 175th anniversary year since James first discovered the Ross Sea, thanks to the individuals and organisations who have poured their hearts and souls into campaigning for its protection," she said.

It culminates years of pressure by conservationists, including a campaign by the global civic movement Avaaz which was kickstarted by Hollywood superstar Leonardo DiCaprio.

"There’s massive momentum in the world right now to protect our oceans," said Avaaz campaign director Luis Morago. "The Ross Sea is just the start."

Obama establishes world's largest marine reserve in Hawaii https://t.co/iiHtWPZ7gj by @kerrsheridan pic.twitter.com/sO3e45v90i

— AFP news agency (@AFP) August 28, 2016

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The existing boundaries of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

 are outlined in light blue. The other Monuments, outlined in purple and green, are

not being changed. Photograph: Noaa

DiCaprio unveils free technology to spy on global fishing

"Around the Horn" - (a message from Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll)

“… Now, in the process of all of this, there's going to be renewed interest in Antarctica, and you're going to find some interesting things about the land under the ice. The topography of the land under the ice does not match the topography of the ice above. Some astonishing shapes will be revealed when you map the actual land under the ice. Points of mountains are going to be revealed, giving an entire different idea of what Antarctica might have been and what its purpose really is. The continent that is uninhabitable by Human Beings may very well be the engine of life for Human Beings. And I will leave it at that. …”

Indonesia turtles find new freedom as they scurry into sea

Yahoo – AFP, October 17, 2016

Tourists release turtles, hatched at a conservation centre, into the ocean in
Pariaman, West Sumatra (AFP Photo/Adek Berry)

Pariaman (Indonesia) (AFP) - A group of turtles scurried down a beach and glided into the sea, enjoying their newfound freedom after being cared for at an Indonesian conservation centre.

The sea turtles were released by local tourists in Pariaman city, on western Sumatra island, in front of the Turtle Conservation Technical Operating Unit.

Turtles, which are under threat due to poaching and habitat destruction, are protected under Indonesian law and the government-run facility mainly focuses its work on olive ridley, hawksbill and green turtles.

The centre typically finds newly hatched baby turtles and looks after them for several months to ensure they will survive, before releasing them into the wild.

Once brought to the facility, they are kept in small pools which contain filtered sea water. The water is changed daily to ensure it stays fresh and the turtles' shells are given a scrub.

Six of the world's seven turtle species can be found in Indonesia, an archipelago

 of more than 17,000 islands that is home to a dizzying array of exotic wildlife

 (AFP Photo/Adek Berry)

Around 1,000 baby turtles and about 50 adults are currently at the centre, which was set up in 2009.

There is also a breeding facility where unhatched eggs are sometimes taken and kept in incubators.

The centre has handled more than 30,000 sea turtles since its establishment. Visitors can pay 10,000 rupiah (70 US cents) to release a turtle into the sea.

Six of the world's seven turtle species can be found in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands that is home to a dizzying array of exotic wildlife.

Almost all turtle species are endangered. Their eggs are considered a delicacy and they are also slaughtered for their meat, skin and shells.

Loggerhead Marinelife Center released two sub-adult loggerhead sea

turtles from its facility off Juno Beach.

Ocean warriors unveil new high-speed ship against Japan whalers

Yahoo – AFP, Sophie Mignon, October 2, 2016

Stretching some 54 metres, Ocean Warrior is equipped with hybrid propulsion to
 extend its range, four powerful engines and a helicopter landing pad (AFP
Photo/Emmuel Dunand)

With its distinctive pirate-like flag flying from the mast, the sleek, high-speed concrete grey Ocean Warrior is the latest weapon in a bitter war between marine conservationists and Japan's whaling fleet.

"The one thing that we were missing in our fleet was a vessel with speed and endurance," said Alex Cornelissen, chief executive of Sea Shepherd Global.

"With the Ocean Warrior, we have a ship that can outmatch any poaching vessel on the high seas," said Cornelissen, also the captain, giving AFP a tour of the ship before its departure from the Netherlands this weekend bound for Australia.

"We are now able to follow them anywhere they go and even run away if they become too aggressive."

Bought at a cost of 8.3 million euros($9.3 million) funded by public lotteries in Britain, The Netherlands and Sweden, Sea Shepherd Global is counting on the vessel in its upcoming battle to save the whales in the icy waters of the Southern Ocean.

The new vessel, designed by a Dutch shipbuilder, took 18 months to build. Stretching some 54 metres (yards), it is a state-of-the-art ship, equipped with hybrid propulsion to extend its range, four powerful engines and a helicopter landing pad.

But it also has a secret weapon -- on the bridge a red cannon can eject a powerful plume of water to obstruct the views of the whalers, or block them from boarding.

For almost four decades, Sea Shepherd has fought to "defend, conserve and protect" marine life in the vast expanses of the planet's oceans.

"With the Ocean Warrior, we have a ship that can outmatch any poaching vessel 

on the high seas," said Alex Cornelissen, chief executive of Sea Shepherd

Global (AFP Photo/Emmanuel Dunand)

Masquerading as science

And for 30 years they have been playing cat-and-mouse on the high seas with determined and at times ruthless whaling fleets.

"The minute you actually find them, you get very excited and the whole crew is excited because that's what you came down here for," said Cornelissen, sitting at the controls which resembles the helm of a spaceship.

"And then you just go into this high energy mode. You don't get tired anymore. You can stay up for 24 hours without interruption," he added.

"All the sacrifices you made to be down in the Antarctic, you know, missing Christmas, missing your family, it's all become worth it when you find the whalers."

Despite a global moratorium imposed in 1986, Japan has continued to hunt whales using a loophole in the ban, but makes no secret the giant mammals end up on dinner plates.

Tokyo was forced to call off its 2014-15 hunt after the International Court of Justice, based in The Hague, ruled its annual Antarctic foray was commercial, and only masquerading as science.

But the hunt resumed in late 2015, with the fleet returning to Japan in March this year after having killed some 333 Minke whales.

Tokyo has sought to close down the anti-whaling campaigns in court saying the activists ram their ships, snare propellers with ropes and harass crews with paint and stink bombs.

The conservationists in turn complain that the whalers have thrown stun grenades at them, and tried to sabotage their boats.

Ocean Warrior will be leaving Amsterdam on Sunday to head to Melbourne as 

Sea Shepherd readies its 11th campaign in the Southern Ocean (AFP Photo/

Emmunuel Dunand)

Vengeance

Sea Shepherd USA and its renowned founder Paul Watson are now prevented by a legal injunction from leading whale defence campaigns against the Japanese.

But Cornelissen and Sea Shepherd Global, based in Amsterdam, have taken up the battle. They estimate that in the past 10 years they have saved some 5,000 whales from Japanese harpoons.

"The international community has failed to enforce the ICJ's rulings in the Southern Ocean, so it's once again up to Sea Shepherd to take action," the group says.

With Ocean Warrior leaving Amsterdam on Sunday to head to Melbourne, Sea Shepherd is readying to launch in December its 11th campaign in the Southern Ocean, dubbed Operation Nemesis.

Named after the Greek goddess of vengeance and justice, the conservationists hope this year the tide could turn in their favour.

"We've had campaigns where we've been following illegal whaling ships and because they had a superior speed, they could simply outrun us ... and we would lose valuable weeks during which they could chase whales," said the captain.

Now this warrior of the oceans, with its four engines can reach speeds of 55 kilometres an hour, around 25 knots, compared to its ocean enemies which only reach up to 20 knots.

"We asked for the biggest engines they had," smiled Cornelissen, shouting above the noise of the motors.

"I'm hopeful, because we've seen the whalers go down and they'll continue to go down, because we’ll continue to make their lives miserable down there."

A handout image supplied by Sea Shepherd Australia in January 2013 shows
 three minke whales on the deck of the Japanese Ship Nisshin Maru.
Photograph: Tim Watters/EPA

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DiCaprio unveils free technology to spy on global fishing

Yahoo - AFP, Kerry Sheridan, September 15, 2016

US actor and environmental campaigner Leonardo DiCaprio has turned his focus
 on illegal fishing, which accounts for up to 35 percent of the global wild marine
catch (AFP Photo/Kazuhiro Nogi)

Miami (AFP) - American movie star Leonardo DiCaprio unveiled Thursday a free technology that allows users to spy on global fishing practices, in a bid to curb illegal activity in the oceans and rebuild imperiled fish stocks.

The technology, known as Global Fishing Watch, was officially released to the public during the Our Oceans Conference hosted by US Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington on Thursday and Friday.

"Today, this unprecedented technology is available to everyone in the world. I encourage everyone to go check it out," DiCaprio told the conference.

"This platform will empower citizens across the globe to become powerful advocates for our oceans."

Available at GlobaFishingWatch.org, the technology aims to offer a crowd sourced solution to the problem of illegal fishing, which accounts for up to 35 percent of the global wild marine catch and causes yearly losses of $23.5 billion, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

Overfishing is also a growing problem worldwide, with about two thirds of fish stocks in the high seas either over exploited or depleted, said the FAO.

Some of the planet's largest fish, including tuna and swordfish, are below 10 percent of their historical level.

Using satellite technology combined with radar aboard boats, the platform allows people to zero in on areas of interest around the world and trace the paths of 35,000 commercial fishing vessels.

"It gives the public an opportunity to see what is happening, even out in the middle of the ocean," said John Amos, president and founder of SkyTruth, one of three partners in the project along with Google and Oceana.

"We need the public to be engaged to convince governments and convince the seafood industry that they need to solve the problems of overfishing," Amos told AFP.

"If you can't see it and can't measure it, you are not going to care about it and it is not going to get solved."

Overfishing is a growing problem around the world, with about two-thirds of fish

stocks in the high seas either over exploited or depleted (AFP Photo/Fred Tanneau)

DiCaprio-funded

The project has cost $10.3 million over the past three years to build, with $6 million of those funds contributed by the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation in January.

In order the make the data available for free, Oceana and its partners negotiated a deal with the satellite company Orbcomm to use its three-day old data, which is described as "near real-time," along with historical records.

Although the delay means that any criminals won't be nabbed instantaneously, advocates say the technology will open the world's waters to public watchdogs in a way that has never been done before.

"We think it is going to have a lot of impact, first of all just the deterrent effect of vessels knowing that we could see them if they are doing something they are not supposed to be doing," Savitz said.

"You can look at an area you are interested in, zoom in and see what data we have."

Possible uses

For instance, users could zero in on a marine protected area and see if any boat tracks have crossed into waters where they should not have been.

One could scan the map for any evidence that large vessels are fishing in areas that are reserved for small-scale fishermen.

Vessels can be tracked by name or by country, or by traffic inside exclusive economic zones.

The paths of ships are visible, including zigzag paths that could indicate vessels are avoiding shore to offload their catch on to other ships undetected, or that other illegal operations or human rights abuses may be under way.

GlobalFishingWatch.org allows people to trace the paths of commercial fishing

 vessels and make sure boats haven't strayed into marine protected areas 

(AFP Photo/Cris Bouroncle)

Savitz said some capacities may be beyond the ability of the average Internet user, but that experts are available via the website to help with specific questions.

Future versions of the technology may even include tagging data for marine animals, so that the paths of whales and sharks and other fish might be visible alongside the vessel activity, she said.

Currently, Global Fishing Watch does not include every vessel, only those that broadcast data from the Automatic Identification System, collected by satellite and terrestrial receivers and meant mainly as a safety mechanism to avoid collisions.

Many of the world's largest fishing vessels are required by the International Maritime Organization to use AIS.

AIS can be turned off if the boat operator is doing something illegal, but Savitz said that such an on-off action would likely be apparent by tracing the boat's appearing and disappearing tracks.

Already, the government of Kiribati has used Global Fishing Watch data to unmask illegal fishing in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area, declared off-limits to commercial fishing on January 1, 2015.

The owners of the vessel had to pay a $1 million fine and also made a "goodwill" donation of another $1 million grant, Oceana said.

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Drones give rare glimpse into Australian whales

Yahoo – AFP, September 6, 2016

Researchers spotted the baby white whale while off the coast of Western Australia
 using a drone to conduct aerial surveys of southern right whale populations (AFP
Photo/Frederik Christiansen)

Sydney (AFP) - Scientists studying whales in Australia have gained rare images of a white calf swimming with its mother as part of a project they hope will help conservation efforts.

Researchers spotted the baby white whale while using a drone to conduct aerial surveys of southern right whale populations off the coast of Western Australia.

"Drones are allowing us to non-invasively measure the size and body condition of free living southern right whales," said Fredrik Christiansen, a researcher at Murdoch University's Cetacean Research Unit.

Lars Bejder, who took the drone footage with Christiansen off Augusta in the state's southwest in July and August, said the drones provided a new perspective on the animals.

Southern right whale populations are showing signs of recovery from the impact of whaling last century, but the population is still estimated to be relatively small at about 3,000 animals in Australian waters.

The white calf is rare as only about five percent of the species are born this colour. They darken to grey in their first year.

Southern right whale populations are showing signs of recovery from the impact 

of whaling last century, but the population is still estimated to be relatively small at

about 3,000 animals in Australian waters (AFP Photo/Frederik Christiansen)

The drones are part of an innovative programme which also uses suction caps applied to the whales to measure their dives and sounds to learn more about the animals.

"Little is known about the three dimensional movements and habitat-use of southern right whales in their breeding and calving grounds in Australia," Bejder said in a statement.

He added that such data was vital for the animal's conservation given many areas in the region were slated for developments which would see an increase in shipping and tourism.

"Our aim is not only to study the behavioural ecology of these amazing animals, but also to provide information to industry and management towards conservation," he said.

The suction cup tags, carefully affixed to the animals via hand-held poles, stay attached for up to 24 hours and measure and record the depth, pitch and roll of swimming behaviour.

"The tag also records sound, which is sufficient for measuring sounds made by boats and those heard by the whales," said Bejder.

Obama highlights environment on Pacific atoll

Yahoo – AFP, Andrew Beatty, September 2, 2016

US President Barack Obama tours Midway Atoll in the North Pacific marine
reserve of Papahanaumokuakea on September 1, 2016 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb)

Midway Island (United States) (AFP) - President Barack Obama went off the beaten track Thursday -- way off -- to a newly expanded marine reserve on an atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, part of an effort to polish his environmental legacy.

Obama flew three hours west of his native Honolulu to Midway Atoll, on the far northwestern tip of the Hawaiian island chain.

The atoll is situated at the heart of Papahanaumokuakea, a vast Pacific marine reserve given protected status by then-president George W. Bush in 2006.

Obama recently quadrupled its size to make it the world's largest marine reserve, home to 7,000 marine species, including many endangered birds as well as the Hawaiian monk seal and black coral, which can live for 4,500 years.

"This is going to be a precious resource for generations to come," Obama told reporters on Midway's Turtle Beach.

All the atoll's 40 inhabitants -- mostly US Fish and Wildlife Service staff -- greeted him.

Until recently, the area was perhaps best known to military history buffs.

Seventy-four years ago, the Battle of Midway was a decisive naval fight in World War II that turned the tide of the war against Japan.

Obama praised the "courage and perseverance" of the vastly outnumbered American soldiers who repelled Japanese forces. "This is hallowed ground," he said.

Now, he added, protecting the vast ecosystem "allows us to study and research and understand our oceans better than we ever have before."

Map and details of what is the world's largest marine reserve, just established

in Hawaii. (AFP Photo/Alain BOMMENEL, Simon MALFATTO, Kun TIAN)

'Existential threat'

The president was later set to go snorkeling with friends away from journalists, the White House said.

Since taking office in 2009, he has designated more protected areas than any of his predecessors using the Antiquities Act, signed in 1906 by Theodore Roosevelt, who established the first national monuments.

For the outgoing president, the visit is part of an eight-year effort to put the environment and tackling climate change higher on the political agenda.

Scientists would be able to undertake "critically important" study of climate change in the marine reserve, he said.

Although Bush created Papahanaumokuakea, he also earned international scorn by rejecting the global climate deal reached at Kyoto.

Obama, in contrast, has led the charge to secure the recently struck Paris climate agreement.

"Rising temperatures and sea levels pose an existential threat to your countries," he said in Honolulu earlier to representatives of Pacific island nations at the World Conservation Congress, a major conference of thousands of delegates, including heads of state, scientists and policy makers.

"And while some members of the US Congress still seem to be debating whether climate change is real or not, many of you are already planning for new places for your people to live," he added.

Asked on Midway whether he would focus on tackling climate change as part of his work after he leaves office in January, Obama said he may try to influence Republican politicians who deny the phenomenon.

"This is something that all of us are going to have to tackle and maybe I get a little more of a hearing if I'm not occupying a political office," he said.

After his Hawaii visit, Obama is set to attend a G20 meeting in China, where he is expected to announce the joint formal joining of the Paris climate accord with President Xi Jinping.

Related Article:

Obama establishes world's largest marine reserve in Hawaii