August 2, 2021 — Endangered killer whales received new habitat protections from the U.S. government Friday.
The National Marine Fisheries Service finalized rules to expand the Southern Resident orca’s critical habitat from the Canadian border down to Point Sur, California, adding 15,910 square miles (41,207 square kilometers) of foraging areas, river mouths and migratory pathways.
Seattlepi.com reports that the total protected area now encompasses more than 18,000 square miles (46,620 square kilometers).
“These critically endangered orcas are finally getting the federal habitat protections they desperately need,” said Julie Teel Simmonds, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.