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Photo:  A.S. Wright

British Columbia’s coastline is 900 kilometres as the crow flies, but includes over 27,000 kilometers of archipelago, inlets, islands and fjords. This geography fosters a spectacular diversity of life but also makes it vulnerable to a variety of threats, from oil spills to increasing industrialization. Our marine conservation program aims to protect marine mammals, marine birds and their habitats.

Initiatives in our Marine Research and Conservation Program

Protecting endangered killer whales

The WHaLE Project

Defining and Defending Marine Mammal Habitat 

Marine Birds

Pacific Herring

Terminal 2 at the end of a long causeway, with Vancouver Island in the distance.

Terminal 2 expansion threatens the Fraser estuary

The Port of Vancouver is proposing to double the size of its shipping terminal at Roberts Bank, putting further stress on an estuary that has already lost more than 70% ...
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A researcher puts a breath sampler in the water from a long pole while a killer whale swims in another frame.

Guide government action on Southern Resident killer whales before March 23

In the last two years, the federal government has taken initial measures to reduce noise and disturbance from vessels (to make it easier for whales to feed and communicate), and ...
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Southern Resident killer whales on the surface of the blue Salish Sea.

We are headed to the Supreme Court for Southern Resident killer whales

Today, Raincoast takes our work to protect Southern Resident killer whales from the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. Working with Living Oceans ...
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J50 and J42, Southern Resident Killer Whales swim in the Salish Sea.

Trans Mountain Expansion project background

Ecojustice, Raincoast Conservation Foundation and Living Oceans Society have worked through the courts to protect Southern Resident killer whales from the threats posed by the Trans Mountain Expansion project. Timeline ...
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A killer whale chases a chinook salmon in the Salish Sea.

Increasing salmon hatcheries could do more harm than good for Chinook and Southern Resident killer whales

In both British Columbia and Washington state, fishery managers, provincial and state legislators, the sports fishing lobby, and even the whale watching industry have advocated for increased production of hatchery ...
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Aerial view of Southern Resident killer whales in the Salish Sea, and Misty Macduffee and CFAX logo in the foreground.

Interview: Why our latest court challenge to the re-approval of the Trans Mountain pipeline is critical for the Salish Sea

The Southern Resident killer whales are a small declining population. The increase in tanker traffic associated with the Trans Mountain expansion will have a significant adverse effect on these killer ...
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Southern Resident killer whales in the Salish Sea.

Saving endangered whales: Strategies from above and below the 49th parallel

On May 10, the Canadian federal government announced its first wide-ranging measures to reduce the primary threats compromising survival of the salmon-eating Southern Resident killer whales reliant on the transboundary ...
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A killer whale in the foreground, with a container ship behind it in the mouth of the Fraser River.

We’re headed back to court for killer whales

Today we are returning to court with partners Ecojustice and Living Oceans Society to challenge the federal government’s re-approval of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. Our lawyers at Ecojustice submitted ...
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Two killer whales come to the surface of the Salish Sea.

Misty MacDuffee on CFAX 1070 talking about the approval of the Trans Mountain Pipeline

The day after the federal government approved the Trans Mountain Pipeline yet again, Raincoast’s Wild Salmon Program Director, Misty MacDuffee spoke with Mark Brennae on CFAX 1070 to talk pipelines, ...
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A Humpback whale fin is visible above the surface of the ocean.

Ecological legacy of coastal B.C. hangs in the balance

British Columbia’s north and central coast, also known as the Great Bear Rainforest, along with Haida Gwaii, hosts a uniquely biodiverse region that is becoming increasingly rare in this world ...
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A single Southern Resident killer whale surfaces in the Salish Sea.

No half measures for Southern Resident killer whales

For the last several months Raincoast and our partners have been working diligently to inform government about what is required for Southern Resident killer whale recovery. Right now, as we ...
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L121 and calf in the Salish Sea.

NEB recommends Trans Mountain proceed despite “significant adverse effects” to Southern Residents

The National Energy Board (NEB) has recommended that the Trans Mountain expansion project should proceed despite the “significant adverse effects” of oil tankers on the critically endangered population of Southern ...
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Killer Whales in the foreground and text: Victoria April 18 Panel

Panel: the future of killer whale recovery

Join us this April, either in person or on online, as we discuss the challenges ahead in the recovery of the endangered Southern Resident killer whales. With the Southern Resident ...
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Killer whales spyhop with a tanker in the background and population viability maps in the foreground.

The National Energy Board and killer whales, on As It Happens

While we are glad that the NEB recognizes that the project will have significant adverse effects on Southern Resident killer whales, we don’t agree that Trans Mountain’s purported benefits are ...
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J16 spy hops: Southern Resident killer whale.

No mitigation measures can protect Southern Resident killer whales from the noise of Trans Mountain’s tanker traffic

Today the National Energy Board (NEB) recommended that the Trans Mountain Expansion should proceed despite the consequence of oil tankers on the critically endangered Southern Resident killer whale population. While ...
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