The US National Oceans and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have revealed plans to create a 200 meter, 360 degree surrounding killer whales while in US waters.

The "No Go zone" proposal would prevent recreational boaters from witnessing one of the the region's most precious and recognized resource - resident killer whales.

Marine waters surrounding northern Washington State and Bristish Columbia are the seasonal home to a protected population of salmon-eating killer whales collectively called the "Southern Residents". With the population now numbering 88 animals, members of the public, researchers and a significant majority of whale watch industry operators in both countries have been pleading with governments to take action that will protect each animal in the short term and guarantee as much as possible the long term viability of the population.

Strangely however, Washington State laws meant to address these same same concerns had only been on the books for 6 months at the time of the NOAA proposal. Whale watching companies in both Victoria BC and Northern Washington state had created a code of conduct that had been in effect for at least 6 years before officials in the northern US state copied the tourism operators best practices nearly word for word and had them codified into law for the 2009 season.

In addition, the State laws specified a zone less than half that specified by the US federal government.

When asked if they felt the new State laws did not go far enough to protect Killer Whales, NOAA officials provided no clear answer.

Whale watch companies in northern Washington state and southern British Columbia are facing the likely and immediate end to their business operations should the NOAA proposals become law as written. The idea that the majestic animal both locals and international visitors alike

Whale watch operators, in Vancouver and Victoria, combine to generate an estimated 10 million dollars CAN each year in their local economies, with the lion's share being earned in the much smaller Victoria. The city of less than three hundred thousand people is the provincial capitol but has lost millions in the last decade in economic activity due to fisheries mismanagement and a steep drop in resource extraction based jobs.

Whale watching has not always been an issue of contention. As local peoples of coastal communities looked for means of supporting theor families as fisheries collapsed, mines closed and resource extraction based employment in general collapsed, men and women with in depth and intimate knowledge of the ecosystem surrounding them struggled to find new means of income.

Click on image to view full size. The orca pictured above are the oldest male and female orca among the Southern resident community. J1, or "Ruffles" as he is called because of the distinctive curves in the trailing edge of his dorsal fin, is the bull pictured above with the large dorsal fin. J1 is over 55 years old, reaching old age for a male orca. J2, or, "Granny", is the matriarch of J pod and is 95 years old. Female orca live quite a bit longer than males do, and Granny is approaching the limit of female orca lifespan. J1 is J2's son, and though it is rare to see them pictured so close together, they have spent their entire lives together as part of J pod.