By Lindsay Street, Statehouse correspondent | A migrating whale that cruises through South Carolina waters is being killed at 10 times the rate its population can sustain, largely due to vessel-strikes and commercial fishery entanglements, experts say.
And while South Carolina has avoided deaths, a wildlife advocate says that is down to luck, not policy.
The Nov. 27 edition of Charleston City Paper showcased a story about the threat endangered right whales face along the Eastern seaboard. A few days later, the Hilton Head Island Packet reported a sighting of the rare creature by a fisherman.
Endangered right whales are migrating along the South Carolina coast now as they move from rich feeding grounds in northern waters to warmer breeding grounds near Florida.
Caroline Bradner, land water and wildlife project manager with Coastal Conservation League of Charleston, said South Carolina needs to remain vigilant in an effort to protect the whales that were once prized for their blubber to fuel lamps prior to electricity and the incandescent light bulb.
The right whale population is in such dire straits that it can only sustain three to five deaths per year, not the 30 that happened since 2017, the City Paper reported.
NOAA’s list of right whale mortalities do not include any that happened in South Carolina, but that could change as the seas rise and warm — and it doesn’t mean that other marine wildlife like manatees aren’t threatened in waters here, Bradner said.
In South Carolina waters, the only direct protection for whales are found in federal regulations lowering ship speeds as they come into harbors.. The state’s lack of seismic testing and offshore drilling is also a boon, Bradner said. But those two things could change.
- Read: S.C. Republicans are among the GOP strongholds pushing back against offshore drilling.
“We in South Carolina can’t do a whole lot about what’s happening in Canada and the Northeast where they are feeding,” Bradner said. “(But) we can be proactive in making sure that if whales are spending more time in South Carolina waters … then we would need to ensure they are finding a hospitable environment when they are here.”
In other S.C. news:
More bills to be pre-filed Dec. 11. House members and state senators will pre-file bills Dec. 11 for the ending year of the 2019-2020 session. House members already pre-filed 97 bills last month. Dec. 11 will be the Senate’s only opportunity to pre-file legislation before the session begins Jan. 14. See pre-file legislation for the Senate here, and the House here.
Lydon confirmed for federal bench. U.S. Attorney Sherri Lydon of South Carolina was confirmed this week by the U.S. Senate as the state’s newest federal judge. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Crick will serve as interim until a new top prosecutor can be appointed by the Trump administration and approved by the Senate. House Judiciary Chair Peter McCoy is reportedly a favorite to succeed Lydon.
Massive magistrate coverage shows flaws. The Post and Courier has released a series of articles over the past week on magistrates, which are appointed by the state legislature — exposing concerns that these judges have little training and have the power to affect thousands of lives. Read more here.
SCforEd sets deadline for legislative agenda. The grassroots teacher group SCforEd has released a legislative agenda and says state lawmakers have until March 17 to agree to their requests or they will “respond accordingly.” The group’s legislative agenda includes a 5 percent salary increase, reducing standardized testing, approval of a teacher’s freedom of speech bill, limits to class sizes and more. Read more.
S.C. child-welfare agency requests $127 M. S.C. Department of Social Services has asked lawmakers for $127 million in a budget that would cover employee raises and hiring more caseworkers. Read more.
2020 candidate calendar
Throughout the campaign season, we are working to keep South Carolina informed of candidate events in the state. Have an event you want us to know about? Email us at 2020news@statehousereport.com.
- Warren to speak Dec. 8 at College of Charleston event. Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren will attend the College of Charleston’s Bully Pulpit series 3:15 p.m. Dec. 8 at F. Mitchell Johnson Physical Education Center, College of Charleston. RSVP here.
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