As described in a recent article in MarineLink, BC Ferries has some key findings to pass along to other vessel operators considering the implementation of underwater radiated noise targets. Important lessons were learned during investigations of how they might reduce the noise from their passenger ferries transiting the Salish Sea, which is home to the endangered southern resident killer whales (SRKWs).

In the May issue of Ocean News & Technology, JASCO’s Chief Communications Officer Roberto Racca gives a panoramic on new mobile platforms apt to be equipped with acoustic monitoring instruments to both detect the presence of vocalizing marine animals and assess their exposure to noise from construction and operation of offshore wind farms.

A video production featuring thoughts and recollections from some of the preeminent scientists of the past half century in the field of underwater acoustics has been published by the Institute of Acoustics and the UK Acoustics Network to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the A B Wood medal. The medal with attendant prize is awarded in alternate years to acousticians based in the UK/Europe (even years) and in the USA/Canada (odd years). One of the 24 medal winners featured in the video is Dr. Michael Ainslie, a senior scientist with JASCO Applied Sciences based in the Netherlands.

On December 10, 2020 Dr. Bruce Martin hosted a webinar titled “How Does Sound Travel in High Energy Environments? Effectiveness of Acoustic Monitoring Systems and Turbine Audibility Assessment”.

To support tidal energy development in the Bay of Fundy, researchers are designing and implementing a long-term acoustic monitoring program. In preparation, specialized acoustic instrumentation was deployed for two months in Grand Passage to better understand how the turbulent waters affect our ability to detect marine mammals, and to what extent these animals can detect a tidal turbine.

JASCO scientist Dr. Klaus Lucke hosted an informative webinar titled Regulatory Approaches to Underwater Noise – An International Comparison. He provides an overview of the most prominent national and international noise regulations. Focussing entirely on marine mammals, parallels and differences in approaches taken by countries, regional agreements, and multinational organisations are presented.

A milestone in ecologically friendly marine transportation for Atlantic Canada was reached on Aug. 12 with the launch ceremony of the first Cape Islander style vessel to be refitted for electric propulsion. The Peggy’s Cove Express, a diesel-powered tour boat (formerly a fishing vessel), was converted to a hybrid system with a clean, battery-powered electric motor in parallel with the original diesel engine. Renamed the Alutasi, this vessel will be Canada’s first Transport Canada Marine Technology Review Board approved boat using electric propulsion powered by lithium-ion batteries.

JASCO measured underwater noise from the original power train, testing various combinations of transit speed. loading conditions and propeller wear, and will soon repeat the measurements for the newly installed electric propulsion system to quantify the environmental benefits of going electric for this style of vessel.

JASCO Victoria’s resident bioacoustician and PhD candidate Xavier Mouy is a featured guest on Lumières’ upcoming webinar Bioacoustics - Voices of the Ocean. In this live online event happening Saturday June 27th at 7 p.m. Eastern, Xavier will join fellow researchers from around the world to discuss the threats of ocean noise pollution on mammals and fishes and what we can do about it.

JASCO Applied Sciences takes a knee in solidarity with Black Lives Matter.

JASCO’s leadership and global team uphold the respect of human dignity and the value of every person as our guiding principle. We stand in full support of a communal push for humankind to reject all forms of discrimination and prevarication of one individual or group over any other.
–Roberto Racca, JASCO's Chief Communications Officer

As many of us pause and ponder how we, ourselves, can shape and support this long-overdue movement, we’d like to share some resources.

For ten years, Craig Evans has helped make the science curriculum exciting for the kids in Mrs. Tracey Evans’s classroom. Every year Craig teaches the fourth graders at Grosvenor-Wentworth Park Elementary about sound energy and how humans and animals use sound to communicate, even under water. After listening to some animal sounds, the children get to see which ones they sound like with JASCO’s educational DORI software, which stands for Detecting Oceanic Real-time Impersonations. The students thanked Craig and JASCO with dozens of beautifully illustrated cards.

JASCO Applied Sciences is featured as a Top 10 Ocean Influencer for 2019 in the Nov/Dec Ocean Exploration issue of ECO Magazine.

A new study will help identify optimal locations, technology and scientific approaches to maximize the effectiveness of whale monitoring in and around a major Canadian shipping region with the goal of mitigating ship strike risk. 

The study uses autonomous underwater gliders and fixed moorings, both equipped with digital acoustic monitoring devices, to locate whales in the Honguedo Strait, between Anticosti Island and the northern Gaspé Peninsula in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 

JASCO Europe took part in the Boskalis Beach Clean Up in Wassenaar in the Netherlands. Our Rotterdam-based staff Federica Pace walked 11.5 km along the beach with 60 other participants, contributing to clearing the beach and dunes from 312 kg of waste, including a great many plastic straws and strands of fishing nets.

With only 75 individuals, the Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW) are critically endangered and face imminent threats to their survival.

A new Government of Canada poster and pamphlet outline the 2019 rules for boating around killer whales on the BC south coast. Help spread the word by sharing this article.

Roberto Racca, JASCO’s Chief Communications Officer, contributed an article to the Ocean Sound special issue of ECO Magazine, announced today.

From the article:
Vulnerable marine species and critical ecosystems worldwide are increasingly at risk of noise-related injury and disturbance from human activity. Shore-connected underwater acoustic observatories enable long-term, real-time monitoring that can document trends in underwater noise levels and simultaneously detect the presence of whales and other aquatic species.

JASCO Applied Sciences was honoured with the 2nd annual Gully Recognition Award for its contributions to the scientific understanding of the Gully Marine Protected Area (MPA). The award is given yearly by the Gully Advisory Committee, a group of government and non-government entities that advises DFO regarding the management of the Gully MPA.

JASCO’s Dartmouth staff welcomed the sunny weather during their annual litter clean-up in honour of Earth Day.

JASCO’s OceanObserver will soon be flying high as a result of a new partnership with Igloo Innovations Inc. JASCO and Igloo have announced an agreement to integrate the OceanObserver underwater acoustic monitoring technology into Igloo’s SeaHawk line of robotic flying vehicles.