A man who used a personal watercraft to speed toward a pod of Pacific white-sided dolphins and take videos with his cellphone has been hit with a $5,000 fine in what officials are calling a precedent-setting decision.
Stephen Michael White was found guilty in Campbell River Provincial Court on May 22 for violating approach distances under marine mammal regulations.
White was recorded speeding toward the dolphins on his jet-ski, coming within just a few feet while filming them on his cellphone — much closer than the 100-metre legal approach distance.
The incident happened in Broughton Strait, near Port McNeill, on Aug. 30, 2022, and was reported by witnesses.
The evidence presented in court included images from White’s own social-media posts as well as testimony and images from witnesses.
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans said the court determined White’s actions were negligent and reckless. He is now banned for six months from operating any motorized vessel on water.
White was also prohibited by the court from posting anything related to marine mammals on social media.
DFO said the case marks the first successful prosecution in Canada under the Marine Mammal Regulations approach-distance rules.
Toothed whale species, including dolphins and killer whales, rely on echolocation and use sound to navigate their environment, so close encounters with a vessel can disrupt natural behaviours and interfere with essential sound signals used for communication, foraging and socialization, DFO said.
Under Marine Mammal Regulations, “disturbing” includes approaching a marine mammal to attempt to feed, swim or interact with it, move it or entice or cause it to move from the immediate vicinity in which it is found, separate it from members of its group, or go between it and a calf, or trap it or its group between a vessel and the shore, or between a vessel and one or more other vessels.
The approach distances under the regulations are 400 metres from all killer whales in southern coastal waters, 200 metres from killer whales in all other Canadian Pacific waters, 200 metres when a whale, dolphin or porpoise is in a resting position or with a calf, and 100 metres from other whales, porpoises and dolphins.
The restrictions apply to all motorized and self-propelled watercraft, swimmers and scuba divers.
