The Nature Conservancy
Working in 79 countries to create a world where people and nature can thrive.
With over one million members, The Nature Conservancy has protected more than 119 million acres of land and thousands of miles of rivers worldwide.
Whale entanglements in fishing equipment are the most significant cause of mortality for whales worldwide. Factors exacerbated by climate change have resulted in a dramatic uptick in those entanglements off California’s coast in the last few years. The Nature Conservancy is tackling this crisis in partnership with the fishing industry, using a multi-faceted approach to mitigate the threat.
Bently Foundation awarded TNC with a $200,000 grant that will help catalyze a five-year project, the aspects of which include: pilot & scale the use of new tools and technology to identify hotspots and high-risk years; strengthen ‘lost gear' recovery projects using data collection & sharing tools; expand the capacity of whale entanglement response teams through training and by advancing recovery tools, and; develop the capacity for response and prevention within the Dungeness crab fishery. The tools and procedures proven successful in this project will be replicated in fisheries throughout the world thanks to The Nature Conservancy’s global reach.
Photo Credits: 1st Gudkovandrey; 2nd Mark Girardeau; 3rd David Hills; 4th Rachelle Fischer; 5th - 8th TNC & Level 2 Industries
