​​​Giving whales the right of way over ships 

Ice whales make marathon underwater migrations to, from and within the Arctic Ocean, following “blue corridors” that act as crucial connectors for marine life. As climate change puts pressure on Arctic whales, Melanie Lancaster, a senior species specialist with WWF’s Global Arctic Programme, explains how growing ship traffic in the region is intensifying these pressures.  

Overhead shot of bowhead whales in blue-green ocean water
Bowhead whale in Cumberland Sound, Nunavut © VDOS Global / WWF-Canada

As human-caused climate change destroys our planet’s cryosphere (its frozen place and elements), vessel traffic in the Arctic is growing. In the last 10 years, the number of ships entering Arctic waters has increased by 37 per cent, and the distance ships travel has doubled. Expansion has been across the board: more bulk carriers, gas tankers, fishing vessels and cargo ships frequent Arctic waters now, thanks to the ramping up of industrial sectors such as fisheries, oil and gas, and mining. 

But whales and other kinds of marine life, having evolved for millions of years in the quiet, ice-covered Arctic Ocean, are ill-prepared for this onslaught. For whales, ships bring risks of fatal collisions along with exposure to underwater noise pollution that can hamper their ability to find food, avoid predators and navigate, among other things. We must get a better handle on the areas where ship traffic and important habitats for Arctic whales overlap so we know where measures are needed to safeguard them.  

Where the whales swim

The WWF Global Arctic Programme recently released an interactive report on Arctic blue corridors that does just that. With a focus on whale migratory routes, the report collates publicly available information for three whale species found only in the Arctic: narwhal, bowhead whales and beluga whales. Based on what we know, about 20 populations of these species swim between their summer and winter habitats, sometimes thousands of kilometres and across national borders, even into the high seas.  

Group of narwhal swimming at the surface of the Arctic Ocean
Group of Narwhals swimming at the surface near Baffin Island, Nunavut © Pascal Kobeh / naturepl.com / WWF

Putting this wealth of information—which included some 10,000 data points representing individual whale locations—onto maps was possible only because of decades of research by scientists around the Arctic who observed the whales from boats, planes and drones and fitted satellite transmitters to their backs to track their movements from space. The maps could be further enriched by Indigenous knowledge gathered by coastal communities that have been following the paths and timings of whale migrations for thousands of years. By mapping what was known, we also started to get a picture of what is not known about whale migrations. The Arctic is a vast region, and there are still many gaps in our knowledge.  

Where the ships sail 

By overlaying ship traffic, the report visualizes the intersection between ships and Arctic blue corridors.  

The verdict? There is considerable overlap. It is probably unsurprising that whales and ships use many of the same corridors, especially as they move through bottlenecks between land masses, where there is typically only one route available. The overlap with ships is particularly high during the whales’ autumn migrations, which follow the most ice-free month of September in the Arctic, when ship traffic is at its most dense. 

Solutions for whale-safe superhighways

This map shows how blue corridors for whales overlap with ship- ping routes in the Arctic, including bottlenecks between land masses. © WWF Global Arctic Programme

It turns out that there are many migration bottlenecks across the Arctic, making the battle for space between migrating whales and ships a pan-Arctic problem rather than an isolated issue. As Arctic countries commit to reaching global biodiversity conservation targets by 2030, they must incorporate Arctic blue corridors into their plans to protect 30 per cent of the oceans and sustainably manage the remaining 70 per cent. This needs to be done at the right scale for nature, which does not recognize political borders.  

Meanwhile, the shipping industry needs to move shipping routes away from blue corridors when whales are migrating. Where this is not possible—as in migration bottlenecks—they must slow down to reduce underwater noise and the risk of fatal collisions with whales. With the industry under pressure to decarbonize, companies are looking for new, more fuel-efficient shipping routes through the world’s oceans. They must consider important habitats for biodiversity in these exercises to avoid making the colossal mistake of moving more ships into the pathways of animals.  

Such guidance to plan voyages accordingly is already available from the UN International Maritime Organization for ships operating in polar waters. Clearly, mandating it can be seen as a regulatory low-hanging fruit. Further, investment by some of the world’s largest shipping companies in quieting technology for ships would be an environmentally responsible use of some of the billions of dollars in profits they reported recently. (For example, in the first week of November, multiple news sources reported that French shipping and logistics company CMA CGM had a net profit of $2.73 billion for the third quarter of 2024.)  

We have built our world in such a way that we are reliant on shipping. Even Arctic communities depend on shipping for the supply of essential goods. But we cannot forget that we are also reliant on nature to live, and our melting world should not be seen as an economic opportunity to exploit without consequence.  

Aerial photo of a pod of white Beluga whales swimming through a break in the sea ice
Beluga whale pod migrating through a sea-ice lead in the Canadian Arctic © naturepl.com / Doug Allan / WWF

 

This article originally appeared in The Circle: Navigating a Changing Arctic