Oil companies use loud noises to disturb whales when surveying the seabed.
A few three live geese have landed on the Greek island of Corfu during the day, the environmental organization said WWF on tuesday. In addition, one young individual landed near the Greek capital Athens last month. It died soon after landing.
Such landings are very rare, according to WWF, and are of concern to local observers. A dolphin-like endangered goose whale usually lives at depths of more than a mile.
“It’s a shy animal that people don’t often see,” describes WWF Greece’s climate and energy policy expert. Dimitris Ibrahim.
WWF and other environmental organizations in the region believe the shores are driven by the operations of the oil company Hellenic Petroleum in the Ionian Sea. The company designs oil wells and therefore surveys the seabed with sound tunnels that direct continuous sound waves into the water.
According to Ibrahim, they are like explosions, the sound of which travels thousands of miles underwater. Sounds are a huge risk to sensitive, audible geese and many other species in the area.
“It is very likely that the oil company’s investigations caused landings. Many scientific studies have shown that whales react strongly to human-made sounds at sea, ”says Ibrahim.
“Animals use sound to communicate, navigate and prey, practically everything. A deaf whale is a dead whale. ”
The whale rescue organization Arion photographed a goose whale on the shores of Corfu.
WWF, Greenpeace and 13 other environmental organizations on Tuesday demanded Greece suspend the oil company’s investigations until their effects on whales and other animals have been clarified. Environmental organizations have been opposed to the oil company’s exploration and drilling permits for years.
“Seismic surveys must end immediately,” the organizations write in his letter To the Greek leadership.
Despite attempts, the news agency AFP on Tuesday did not get the oil company or the Greek Ministry of the Environment to comment on the issue.
Ibrahimin In any case, Greek beaches should now be actively monitored to detect new landings and avoid whale deaths.
“We’ll probably see more landings, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Dead goose whales sink to the bottom, and there are probably several for every whale found. ”
Goose whale on the shores of Corfu.
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