The Beaked Whales are again on the AC26 agenda. AC25 in 2019 recommended that applying the precautionary principle is of greater importance with beaked whales, as compared with other small cetaceans, given the likelihood of small population sizes and the evidence that military activities can have severe impacts on these taxa, and acknowledging the difficulties encountered in gaining reliable information . Photo: Northern Bottlenose Whale © S. Hooker / Sea Watch Foundation.
The 26th Meeting of the Advisory Committee to the Agreement for the Conservation of Small Cetaceans in the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANS) is due to take place virtually from 8 to 12 November 2021, as decided by the 9th Meeting of the Parties last year. The scientific session of the meeting will see participants review and discuss four pressures to small cetaceans listed in the Annex to Resolution 8.1 (Rev.MOP9), namely underwater noise, ocean energy, unexploded ordnance, and marine spatial planning.