Ocean speed limit set to protect whales

Here's a bit of good news for Right whales that's been a long time coming: on the United States' Atlantic coast this week, a speed limit of 11 knots has been set for ships 65 feet or longer that travel within 23 miles of major ports, as well as in areas where the North Atlantic Right whale breeds, feeds and migrates.

This is of particular interest to the Bay of Fundy because Right whales (migrating to their summer feeding here from the U.S. coasts of Georgia & North Carolina) swim by all those major U.S. ports. Northern Right whales are an endangered species (only 300 to 400 remain) and their most serious threat is ship strikes, which kill 1 to 2 whales per year.

For more info, check out the group that spearheaded this initiative, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration - NOAA's website.