skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, July 26, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before start of Olympics, the Obamas endorse Harris for President; A NY county creates facial recognition, privacy protections; Art breathes new life into pollution-ravaged MI community; 34 Years of the ADA.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Harris meets with Israeli PM Netanyahu and calls for a ceasefire. MI Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces backlash for a protest during Netanyahu's speech. And VA Sen. Mark Warner advocates for student debt relief.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

There's a gap between how rural and urban folks feel about the economy, Colorado's 'Rural is Rad' aims to connect outdoor businesses, more than a dozen of Maine's infrastructure sites face repeated flooding, and chocolate chip cookies rock August.

OR to decide on added protections for decreasing orca population

play audio
Play

Thursday, February 15, 2024   

Oregon officials are considering providing additional protections to orcas in the region.

The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission will decide on Friday if Southern Resident orcas should be listed as endangered in the state.

Kathleen Callaghy is the Northwest representative for Defenders of Wildlife. She said there is a perception that this population was mainly off the coast of Washington and in the Salish Sea.

"But a couple of years ago the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officially expanded their critical habitat," said Callaghy, "because they found there were some whales who were traveling as far south as Monterrey Bay in California."

Southern Resident orcas are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and in Washington.

However, their numbers have continued to dwindle in recent years, down to about 70.

Callaghy said added protections from Oregon could help the orcas battle their main threats.

"We think that doing this listing will help to trigger interstate and intrastate agency collaboration," said Callaghy, "on addressing their needs as far as salmon abundance, reducing pollutants, and reducing vessel traffic and noise."

Along with an endangered species listing, Callaghy said she hopes the state will also adopt strong guidelines for how to protect these whales.

She said it's especially important to increasing salmon numbers.

"The survival of these species is interlinked," said Callaghy. "When we see Chinook populations go down, it's tightly correlated with losses among the Southern Resident population."



Disclosure: Defenders of Wildlife contributes to our fund for reporting on Climate Change/Air Quality, Endangered Species & Wildlife, Energy Policy, Public Lands/Wilderness. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
According to the Tax Policy Center, for higher-income earners, sales taxes consume a lower share of their income than for other households. (Vitalii Vodolazskyi/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As Nebraska state lawmakers convene for a special session on property tax reform called by Gov. Jim Pillen, groups are weighing in on the details …


play sound

Traveling around rural Minnesota can be difficult but in more than half the state, nonprofit transit systems are helping people get where they need …

Social Issues

play sound

Student loan forgiveness took center stage on Thursday at the American Federation of Teachers conference. The Biden administration has canceled more …


Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has introduced legislation to codify the Chevron Deference into law. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Recent Supreme Court rulings on air pollution are affecting Virginia and the nation. Climate advocates said the court overstepped its bounds in …

Health and Wellness

play sound

World Hepatitis Day is this Sunday, and for the Oregon Health Authority, it's an opportunity to promote its plan to eliminate hepatitis across the …

The Gender Shades project revealed facial recognition performed poorest for darker-skinned women, and performed best for lighter-skinned men. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Columbia County, New York, is implementing new facial recognition and privacy policies, following new upgrades to the county's surveillance cameras…

Health and Wellness

play sound

New York disability-rights advocates are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The 1990 …

Social Issues

play sound

As summer winds down and North Carolina students prepare to return to school, the focus shifts to the urgent need for better public education funding…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021