20.03.2015 change 20.03.2015

WWF calls for the protection of the Baltic harbour porpoise

Photo: Fotolia Photo: Fotolia

This year in Poland, popular campaign of the WWF environmentalists "Earth Hour" takes on a new shape of the "Porpoise Hours". Activists point out that the only Baltic mammal is critically endangered. It is estimated that only 450 animals of this species live in the Baltic.

"Earth Hour" is known for its annual symbolic lights out on the last Saturday of March. Thousands of cities and companies, and tens of thousands of people in the world join the campaign. For 60 minutes, illuminations and light go out on specific buildings, and in homes. The purpose of the "Hour" is to draw attention to progressing climate change.

Environmentalists at press conference in the capital City Hall announced that this year, in addition to the lights out, they want to draw attention to the problem of the endangered only Baltic mammal, the porpoise.

Małgorzata Simonowicz from the foundation WWF Polska told PAP that in March environmentalists will visit Polish cities and encourage to sign a special appeal posted on the website: godzinadlaziemi.pl.

"The idea is to introduce the protection program for this mammal, which created on the initiative of, among others, WWF Polska. In 2013 it was submitted to the Ministry of the Environment, but has not yet been introduced. The purpose of our campaign is to show that the population of the Baltic harbour porpoise is critically endangered" - she explained.

According to the December estimates, there are only 450 animals of this species living in the waters of the Baltic Sea. "Without action, the future of porpoise is in danger" - said Simonowicz.

She noted that these likeable mammals are primarily threatened by the by-catch, accidental entanglement in fishing nets. "Porpoises use echolocation to see what is in front of them. Unfortunately, they do not see nets, which is why we are trying to change the specifications of the nets so that porpoises would not get caught" - she added.

Simonowicz pointed out that another problem is noise, to which porpoises are very sensitive. "All of us can help a little, for example by reducing the noise we create during visits to the Baltic Sea. This includes motorboats, scooters, and sea tourism" - she emphasised.

During the conference, Deputy Mayor of Warsaw Włodzimierz Paszyński declared that he would sign the appeal of environmentalists. He also noted that the visit of activists in the capital is highly justified. "As you know we have a mermaid in the coat of arms. If you believe the legend, the mermaid came from the Atlantic and was travelling with her sister to the Baltic Sea. Her sister stayed in Denmark and today lives in Copenhagen, and the other swam here, and thanks to her we have Warsaw. Maybe one day porpoise will follow the mermaid" - he said.

Deputy Mayor believes that the WWF appeal should meet with a strong response from Warsaw residents who are sympathetic causes associated with nature.

As part of the WWF initiative, "porpoise" will also visit other cities. In the following days it will go to Zielona Góra, Poznań, Olsztyn, Szczecin and Słupsk. The campaign will be concluded on March 28 in Gdynia, with the harbour porpoise’s symbolic return to the Baltic Sea.

The harbour porpoise is the only cetacean species living permanently in the Baltic Sea. It is found in the coastal zone of cool and temperate waters of the northern hemisphere. In the interwar period, porpoises were so numerous that the Polish authorities introduced special bonuses for catching or killing them. These animals were treated as pests that destroy nets and decimate fish.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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