The Okhotsk Sea is inhabited by a small herd of grey whales comprising about one hundred animals. The majority of these animals - more than twenty thousand - are spread in the Pacific Ocean from California through Chukot Peninsular. Previously, grey whales could be met in the Atlantic Ocean as well, but three hundred years ago European whalers extirpated them out. The Pacific whales also went through hard times: thirty years ago they numbered only four thousand. However, the ban on large-scale commercial whaling imposed in 1976 helped the animals to recover.
The whale herd inhabiting the vicinity of the coasts of Russia suffered seriously in the 20th century first from American and then from Russian whalers and, therefore, failed to recover when the ban was imposed. On top of that, whales in the vicinity of Russian coasts reproduce extremely reluctantly: only fourteen females capable of reproduction remain in the herd. They delivered only 22 whale-calves within the five years that they have been observed by the researchers of the Kamchatka Branch of the Pacific Institute of Geography (Far-East Division, Russian Academy of Sciences). Two thirds of the whale-calves died during the first 18 months. According to the researchers' calculations, the birth-rate in the Okhotsk grey whale herd prevails the death-rate only by one percent. Soon, the life of these animals will become even harder.
The Sakhalin petroliferous shelf development started in the mid-90s. In compliance with the Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 Projects, Exon Oil&Gas (Exon Nefetgaz) and Sakhalinenergy companies were to install drilling platforms along the north-western shore of the island, in the area of Piltun lagoon. This is the area where whale females and whale-calves find food and grow fat in summer. Since the very beginning of the shelf development, biologists have been demanding that a preserve should be set up in that area (this requirement has been included in the Ecological Examination Statement). The preserve was supposed to cover the territory of Piltun lagoon and the ten-kilometer wide sea zone along the shore. This requirement was disregarded and in 1999, when the first drilling platform was installed, the shelf development consequences were quick to produce their impact.
Regardless of the fact that oil-field facilities are now located 19 kilometers southbound from the summer feeding area, the whales had to leave the southern part of it, and they currently feed ten kilometers further to the north. Besides that, the whale began to lose weight. In 1999 biologists noticed ten extremely exhausted whales, and two years later every fifth whale in the herd was exhausted, including half of the females capable of reproduction. Biologists failed to carry out thorough investigations, therefore they brought forward two versions for the whales' emaciation. The first version is that the noise produced by the drilling facilities and the ships moving to and fro along the lagoon coast disturb the whales and prevent them from normal feeding. The second version is - the whales have poisoned themselves. This version is not incidental: a lot of water gets out of the drilling in the course of oil production, the water being discharged into the sea.
Soon the whales' life along the coast of Sakhalin will become even more unpleasant. The second platform is planned to be installed directly in the middle of the whales' feeding area. A ten-kilometer oil-pipe line is scheduled to be laid through Piltun lagoon. This project is dangerous, as a lot of poisonous silt will be raised from the bottom of the lagoon during the construction, and the silt may spread to cover the entire feeding area. The most dangerous thing is an accident at the oil-field which can destroy the whales' feeding area. There is no other place similar to Piltun lagoon in the Okhotsk Sea.
"We need to develop a well-coordinated and agreed action plan to preserve grey whales in the Okhotsk Sea and to bring the plan for consideration of the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission", says Vassily Spiridonov, head of the maritime program, World Wildlife Fund.
"It is urgently required to introduce a special construction, production and transport activity mode in the area while the grey whales stay there", states Valery Vladimirov, All-Russian Institute of Fish Industry and Oceanography. " We also need to make a thorough ecological examination of Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 Projects".
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