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 Society and our legal team at Ecojustice, we have filed an application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court. We are arguing that the…

J50 and J42, Southern Resident Killer Whales swim in the Salish Sea.

Trans Mountain Expansion & Southern Resident killer whales: Project background

Raincoast Conservation Foundation represented by Ecojustice have worked through the courts to protect Southern Resident killer whales from the threats posed by the Trans Mountain Expansion project.  Timeline 2013 – Raincoast and Living Oceans, legally represented by Ecojustice, file as formal intervenors in the National Energy Board’s review of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX)….

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 waters of the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Although federally listed as endangered in 2003 in Canada and 2005 in the US, little has happened…

Southern Resident killer whale, J50, looking emaciated in the Salish Sea.

Cabinet rejects request for an emergency order for endangered killer whales

Last week the Canadian federal government announced its refusal to issue an emergency order to protect endangered Southern Resident killer whales under the Species at Risk Act, despite the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans’ recommendation to do so. Misty MacDuffee joined Adam Stirling on CFAX 1070 on Monday, November 5th to discuss these measures…

A Souther Resident killer whale is watched by a whale watching vessel: five logos on the right including David Suzuki Foundation, World Wildlife Fund, Georgia Strait Alliance, Natural Resources Defense council and Raincoast Conservation Foundation.

We are taking the federal government to court to protect endangered Southern Resident killer whales

Today, we launched a lawsuit to ensure our federal government acts to protect the endangered Southern Resident killer whales. The lawsuit comes less than a month after Southern Resident J35 (Tahlequah) carried her deceased calf for 17 days

J50 and Family in the Salish Sea

We won our legal challenge to stop the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion

Today we can all celebrate a significant win in our efforts to protect Southern Resident killer whales, Fraser River salmon and the Salish Sea. This morning, the federal court of appeal unanimously ruled that the Canadian government’s approval of the Trans Mountain Expansion project violated its legal obligations to protect endangered Southern Resident killer whales…

Chris Darimont close up with the CRFAX 1070 logo floating in the background.

Southern Resident killer whales need action, not delay

Will Southern Resident killer whales survive the next one hundred years? Is the Federal government willing to finally implement the measures needed to protect and recover killer whales in the Salish Sea? How do Chinook salmon populations, shipping, fishing, whale watching, vessel noise and disturbance in the Salish Sea impact killer whales? Mark Bennae and Adam Stirling asked these questions and more…

Southern Resident killer whales swim side by side in the Salish Sea, with joint partner logos on the right, including David Suzuki Foundation

Critical situation for Southern Resident killer whales provokes call for urgent action

Only 76 Southern Resident killer whales remain. This is a critical situation. Today, represented by Ecojustice, and in collaboration with other science and environmental organizations, we are calling on the Canadian government to take immediate action to protect these whales…