Social media video featuring the project.
OCC - Red de Avistaje de la Ballena Franca
Rodrigo Garcia Pingaro
Other projects
15 Dec 2009
Promoting a Sanctuary for Whales: Habitat Conservation and Education of Southern Right Whale in Coastal Communities Uruguay
4 May 2016
Towards Community-Based Marine Protected Areas, for Uruguay’s Coastal and Ocean Waters: "Guardians of the Whale and Dolphin Sanctuary"
The aim is to promote the Sanctuary regulation which will be proposed with participation of the society, local communities and the private sector. These actions to put forward in the regulation will include environmental, socio-cultural and economic aspects focused on promoting the empowerment of key stakeholders in the medium and long term.
The creation of a Sanctuary in Uruguayan waters was an initiative supported by the coastal communities and gestated by the school’s children together with our organization, based on the educational activities of the OCC. The Sanctuary was a recent major victory for the nation in nature conservation, where in the last few years, large development schemes have continued to threaten the marine natural resources.
The Sanctuary will help to reinforce the requirements for the authorities involved and the companies to prevent and avoid impacts in areas with cetaceans, as well as in areas closer to seismic exploration and the obligation for the companies to report to the general public the results of the explorations. In relation with the increase of ship traffic lines the project proposes the "daily navigation alert", including surveillance that will be done on board Army ships. In reference of a responsible tourism and sustainable whale watching, the project will establish a marine practice protocol and the quality stamp certification to the boats and captains, supported by the authorities involved. The Sanctuary will also contribute to the 3 coastal marine protected areas (Cerro Verde, Cabo Polonio and Laguna de Rocha) with a management plan, applying marine regulations by law to the national system, working with national authorities.
The project will continue to reinforce the Cetacean Stranding Network in Uruguay and the Veterinarian Protocol endorsed by the authorities, working in social networks with cell phone applications (specific software design to downloaded and submit the whale information online). In scientific aspects we will continue with: the Catalog of individuals (Id-photo) to determine the population dynamics of right whales; mapping the acoustic sounds of cetaceans and sampling the zooplankton and coastal water quality.
Finally we will increase the level of knowledge, the awareness in the citizens and local communities about the importance of the conservation of cetaceans and their economic values.