0:00:13.876,0:00:15.085
Thank you.

0:00:16.322,0:00:17.758
I love my job.

0:00:18.584,0:00:22.076
I'm a marine biologist,[br]and I work up in the Arctic

0:00:22.077,0:00:25.444
alongside Inuit hunters[br]and government biologists,

0:00:25.445,0:00:29.091
studying beluga, narwhals, killer whales[br]and other marine mammals.

0:00:29.901,0:00:33.674
But what I really want to talk[br]to you about today is sound.

0:00:33.675,0:00:37.701
Sound and how it's affecting[br]marine mammals in the North.

0:00:38.621,0:00:40.940
Now, one of the wonderful[br]things about my job

0:00:40.941,0:00:43.510
is that what I wear to work[br]on a casual Friday

0:00:43.511,0:00:46.622
is probably a lot different[br]than what you wear to work.

0:00:46.623,0:00:51.146
A typical day for me in a field[br]is really anything but typical.

0:00:52.959,0:00:55.585
My drysuit is too big.

0:00:56.196,0:00:58.346
Anyone who works[br]in the Arctic, in the water,

0:00:58.347,0:01:01.164
can tell you that having[br]a drysuit that doesn't fit you

0:01:01.165,0:01:03.790
is a really, really bad thing.

0:01:03.792,0:01:07.543
Every time I move, I can feel[br]a little bit of water running down my arm,

0:01:07.544,0:01:11.067
running down my legs[br]and pooling at my feet.

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I'm also standing about waist-deep[br]in freezing-cold water.

0:01:14.503,0:01:17.737
I'm bracing myself up[br]against one of my colleagues,

0:01:17.738,0:01:21.652
I've got pliers in one of my hands,[br]I've got a glove in my mouth

0:01:21.653,0:01:24.297
- because if I put it down,[br]it's going to drift away -

0:01:24.298,0:01:26.886
and I've got my other hand[br]on the back of a beluga.

0:01:27.290,0:01:30.777
I'm working to attach the wires[br]of a satellite transmitter to the animal,

0:01:30.777,0:01:33.298
as you can see in this photo behind me.

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We're trying to figure out[br]where these animals migrate to,

0:01:36.042,0:01:38.719
and what parts of their habitat[br]are important for them

0:01:38.720,0:01:41.712
in order to protect their[br]critical habitat for the future.

0:01:42.292,0:01:45.168
The whole thing from the capture[br]to the release of the animal

0:01:45.170,0:01:46.914
takes about 20 minutes,

0:01:46.915,0:01:48.750
but I could certainly never tell you

0:01:48.751,0:01:51.085
that I have no idea[br]of what is going on around me,

0:01:51.093,0:01:53.622
what the other people are saying,[br]what they are doing,

0:01:53.623,0:01:55.673
other than what is right in front of me,

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which is this beautiful, glossy,[br]rubbery-feeling animal

0:02:00.638,0:02:04.525
that every now and then[br]let's me know it's OK,

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because I can feel[br]this kind of body against me,

0:02:09.292,0:02:15.859
and I can also feel this kind of wet,[br]fishy breath on the side of my face.

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But I can certainly tell you[br]that working around marine mammals,

0:02:21.299,0:02:26.004
university certainly doesn't prepare you[br]for capturing and handling whales.

0:02:27.464,0:02:29.302
Now, these are photos of belugas.

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You've probably seen photos before,[br]they're pretty magnificent animals.

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But I want to share with you[br]is what they sound like,

0:02:35.998,0:02:37.843
what they sound like under water,

0:02:37.844,0:02:41.377
to give you an idea of how critical[br]noise is to these animals.

0:02:41.378,0:02:43.346
(Beluga sounds)

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It's pretty amazing[br]if you haven't heard it before.

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I get really close to these animals[br]in their natural environment,

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but what I'm really[br]curious about is sound,

0:02:58.952,0:03:02.014
and how sound is affecting them[br]in their natural behavior.

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So here's the problem:

0:03:04.175,0:03:05.769
if I told you that this year

0:03:05.770,0:03:08.625
was the lowest extent[br]of summer sea ice on record,

0:03:08.626,0:03:12.041
you probably wouldn't be surprised,[br]it's all over the news.

0:03:12.042,0:03:15.509
But what might surprise you[br]is how this is actually affecting

0:03:15.510,0:03:20.642
these animals and their habitat right now,[br]even before the ice disappears,

0:03:20.643,0:03:23.281
which is actually[br]another problem on its own.

0:03:23.971,0:03:27.053
As the sea ice changes,[br]so does development.

0:03:27.683,0:03:32.107
We have industrialization in the Arctic,[br]there is a lot of money at stake.

0:03:32.108,0:03:36.398
We have commercial shipping,[br]we have oil and gas exploration.

0:03:37.058,0:03:40.875
We can all see what this can do[br]to the marine environment,

0:03:40.876,0:03:43.301
but I think it's what we can't see

0:03:43.302,0:03:46.319
that is something that we need[br]to think about right now.

0:03:47.249,0:03:50.904
The noise all of this is causing[br]in our environment

0:03:50.905,0:03:53.170
might be doing more damage[br]to the marine mammals

0:03:53.171,0:03:55.106
than we could imagine.

0:03:56.676,0:04:00.099
(Icebreaker sound)

0:04:07.235,0:04:09.791
What you've just heard[br]was the sound of an icebreaker

0:04:09.792,0:04:13.341
breaking ice through the surface[br]of the water; it's quite loud.

0:04:13.901,0:04:17.845
Imagine if you added to that[br]noise created by seismic surveys,

0:04:17.846,0:04:21.238
noise created by drilling[br]in the Arctic Ocean.

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Now you have more noise created[br]in the underwater environment,

0:04:24.653,0:04:29.582
in the Arctic, created by humans,[br]than we've ever had before.

0:04:30.683,0:04:34.472
Now we're polluting our environment[br]with more than just waste.

0:04:34.473,0:04:37.424
We're polluting[br]our environment with noise.

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Let me give you a sound example[br]to put this into perspective.

0:04:41.868,0:04:45.568
The people at the back of this auditorium[br]can for surely hear me speaking

0:04:45.584,0:04:48.459
even if they're not clueing[br]into what I'm saying.

0:04:48.460,0:04:51.130
There is also probably people[br]just outside the doors

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that can hear me speaking as well[br]if they have good hearing.

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But almost for sure, there is no one[br]out on the street, 100-200 meters away,

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doors or no doors,[br]that can hear me speaking.

0:05:03.154,0:05:06.454
Yes, sound does travel differently[br]in air than it does in water,

0:05:06.455,0:05:10.215
but our human hearing,[br]our undeveloped human hearing,

0:05:10.216,0:05:13.851
is nothing compared to[br]that of a beluga or a narwhal.

0:05:14.461,0:05:16.915
These animals have[br]the ability to communicate

0:05:16.916,0:05:19.918
over tens of kilometers under water.

0:05:20.818,0:05:23.573
Sound is also critical for their survival.

0:05:23.574,0:05:26.549
They use sound to communicate[br]between each other,

0:05:26.550,0:05:29.748
they use sound to locate[br]their food at depths,

0:05:29.749,0:05:33.507
and they also use sound[br]to locate their breathing holes.

0:05:35.199,0:05:38.555
Recently, the behavior of these animals[br]has begun to change.

0:05:38.556,0:05:40.177
We've started seeing these animals

0:05:40.178,0:05:43.294
avoiding commercial icebreakers[br]at great distances.

0:05:43.904,0:05:46.636
Beluga, for example,[br]have been seen avoiding ships

0:05:46.637,0:05:50.078
in distances of excess of 50 kilometers.

0:05:50.828,0:05:52.926
So we know that this is affecting them,

0:05:52.927,0:05:56.581
they want to keep a lot of space[br]between these ships and themselves.

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But what we don't know[br]is how badly this is affecting them.

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What we do know,

0:06:05.143,0:06:07.121
what our ongoing research[br]has suggested,

0:06:07.122,0:06:11.994
is that all this noise[br]is actually masking their ability

0:06:11.995,0:06:14.951
to communicate properly with each other.

0:06:16.692,0:06:19.098
This is a photo of an ice entrapment.

0:06:19.099,0:06:20.362
It's a pretty gory photo,

0:06:20.363,0:06:23.516
but I wanted to show you[br]an example of what this looks like.

0:06:23.517,0:06:27.715
So on the left we have[br]a breathing hole that is left in the ice,

0:06:27.716,0:06:28.648
and on the right

0:06:28.649,0:06:31.880
we have a bunch of belugas[br]fighting for the space to breathe.

0:06:32.584,0:06:36.043
Now, ice entrapments in the Arctic[br]are actually a natural occurrence.

0:06:36.050,0:06:40.130
They happen where winds pick up[br]very quickly and water freezes over,

0:06:40.131,0:06:43.588
and these animals don't have[br]enough time to escape to open water.

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But recently, we've been seeing[br]this happening in places

0:06:47.130,0:06:49.701
where it has never happened before,

0:06:49.702,0:06:54.345
in places that predictably[br]cover over with ice every year.

0:06:55.039,0:06:58.071
In 2008, behavior[br]of these animals changed,

0:06:58.072,0:07:02.377
and we saw over 1,000 whales[br]parish in an ice entrapment.

0:07:03.097,0:07:06.781
Over 1,000 whales that were[br]mainly mothers and calves.

0:07:06.782,0:07:08.498
Try to imagine what that looks like.

0:07:08.499,0:07:09.582
1,000 whales,

0:07:09.583,0:07:14.615
- we're talking 3 to 5 meters in length,[br]maybe a little less for the babies,

0:07:14.616,0:07:17.116
and weighting up to the weight[br]of a family van -

0:07:17.117,0:07:20.163
all trying to breathe out of one hole.

0:07:20.164,0:07:22.689
It's pretty disturbing[br]when you think about it.

0:07:22.690,0:07:23.833
And mothers and calves,

0:07:23.834,0:07:26.943
It's obvious because the calves[br]didn't have the lung capacity

0:07:26.944,0:07:28.899
to make it out to the open water,

0:07:28.900,0:07:33.986
which in this case was[br]some 40 to 50 kilometers away,

0:07:33.987,0:07:37.053
and the mothers weren't willing[br]to leave their babies behind.

0:07:37.543,0:07:42.020
In 2009, we had 100 animals die[br]in West Greenland,

0:07:42.021,0:07:45.204
and in 2010, 50 to 100 whales.

0:07:46.391,0:07:48.170
It just doesn't make a lot of sense.

0:07:48.171,0:07:51.376
We have animals that predictably[br]leave their summer grounds

0:07:51.378,0:07:55.602
- every year, end of September,[br]beginning of October -

0:07:55.603,0:07:59.836
that chose not to leave an area[br]that completely covers in ice.

0:08:00.986,0:08:05.173
Imagine the panic, imagine the chaos

0:08:05.174,0:08:08.620
that would cause an animal[br]to return to an area

0:08:08.621,0:08:11.178
that wouldn't allow them to breathe.

0:08:12.565,0:08:15.827
What kind of noise[br]were these animals hearing?

0:08:15.828,0:08:18.513
How loud must have it been?

0:08:18.514,0:08:22.434
What was different than before?[br]Something had to have changed, right?

0:08:23.294,0:08:26.455
At the same time that these animals[br]were beginning their migration

0:08:26.456,0:08:29.250
- again, end of September,[br]beginning of October -

0:08:29.251,0:08:32.429
seismic activity was happening[br]in North Baffin Bay.

0:08:32.980,0:08:37.332
Seismic activity has never occurred[br]in North Baffin Bay this late in the year,

0:08:37.332,0:08:40.253
exactly at the time of the migration.

0:08:41.461,0:08:43.558
Scientists studying this problem suggest

0:08:43.559,0:08:46.742
that this seismic activity[br]caused an interruption

0:08:46.743,0:08:49.392
in the traditional migration[br]path of these animals

0:08:49.393,0:08:52.217
and caused them to return[br]to their summer grounds;

0:08:52.218,0:08:55.813
again, an area[br]that completely covers in ice.

0:08:57.498,0:09:00.818
Now, loud noise confuses[br]us all, that's for sure.

0:09:01.508,0:09:06.156
Try to imagine that you're driving[br]your car or riding you bike to work.

0:09:06.157,0:09:09.242
And at the same time[br]that you hear an ambulance siren,

0:09:09.243,0:09:12.509
all the cars around you[br]just lay on their horns.

0:09:13.329,0:09:16.945
Now, imagine trying to locate[br]the ambulance noise

0:09:16.946,0:09:19.845
amongst all the rest of the noise.

0:09:19.846,0:09:24.971
Imagine trying to pick out[br]that critical noise amongst all the rest

0:09:24.972,0:09:27.618
and figure out where you should go.

0:09:27.619,0:09:28.803
Another example.

0:09:28.804,0:09:31.189
Let's say that you're sitting[br]in your office desk,

0:09:31.190,0:09:34.543
and there is a pile driver operating[br]outside of one window,

0:09:34.544,0:09:38.071
and there is a truck moving forward[br]and backward outside the other window,

0:09:38.072,0:09:41.564
and your colleague is nattering away[br]really loudly on the phone.

0:09:42.514,0:09:45.980
Imagine trying to have[br]a critical conversation of your own.

0:09:46.660,0:09:50.033
Or imagine trying to write[br]a really important e-mail.

0:09:50.034,0:09:52.346
Pretty hard to focus, right?

0:09:52.347,0:09:54.333
Now, imagine if sound was

0:09:54.334,0:09:57.735
how you located your food[br]or how you navigated.

0:09:59.375,0:10:02.126
A leading Danish researcher[br]Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen,

0:10:02.130,0:10:03.873
other colleagues and I believe

0:10:03.874,0:10:07.875
that sound might be causing[br]new and substantial problems.

0:10:08.395,0:10:10.024
We think sound might be the reason

0:10:10.025,0:10:13.904
for these fall ice entrapments[br]of narwhal in new areas.

0:10:16.205,0:10:20.132
Sound also travels over incredibly[br]long distances under water.

0:10:20.133,0:10:23.646
If you've ever been scuba diving,[br]you've probably experienced this before:

0:10:23.647,0:10:25.279
maybe you hear a propeller noise,

0:10:25.280,0:10:29.051
you look up thinking it's going to be[br]right above you because it sounds so close

0:10:29.052,0:10:32.251
and it is actually way,[br]way off in the distance.

0:10:33.137,0:10:36.206
Seismic ship-based surveys,[br]which are used to locate

0:10:36.207,0:10:38.920
oil and gas deposits[br]beneath the sea floor,

0:10:38.921,0:10:42.129
create an incredible amount of noise.

0:10:42.130,0:10:46.157
This noise which is created by explosions[br]that generate sound waves

0:10:46.158,0:10:47.336
has been picked up

0:10:47.337,0:10:50.384
over 3,000 kilometers[br]from the ship source.

0:10:51.084,0:10:54.657
Just try to imagine that -[br]3,000 kilometers!

0:10:54.658,0:11:00.119
We're talking farther than the distance[br]from Vancouver to my hometown of Winnipeg.

0:11:00.120,0:11:03.663
Imagine being able to pick up[br]one noise in that distance.

0:11:05.891,0:11:10.049
And perhaps, more importantly,[br]the noise that is created by these surveys

0:11:10.050,0:11:12.731
is actually operating at a frequency

0:11:12.732,0:11:16.025
which overlaps[br]that of narwhal communication.

0:11:17.513,0:11:20.564
Imagine the confusion[br]that these animals must be undergoing

0:11:20.565,0:11:23.001
when a survey is happening.

0:11:23.002,0:11:26.708
How do you think we as humans[br]may compare in this situation?

0:11:28.268,0:11:32.515
Now, what if seismic surveys are[br]the reason for these entrapments?

0:11:33.265,0:11:36.994
What if ice breaking[br]and year-round shipping in the Arctic

0:11:36.995,0:11:38.924
has the same effect?

0:11:40.664,0:11:43.932
What if noise of this magnitude[br]has the ability

0:11:43.933,0:11:48.020
to mask communications[br]between mother and calf,

0:11:48.021,0:11:52.612
mask the ability of these animals[br]to find food at ocean depths,

0:11:52.613,0:11:54.956
or for these animals[br]to find their breathing holes

0:11:54.957,0:11:57.771
which ultimately means their survival?

0:11:58.693,0:12:00.305
What if their winter grounds

0:12:00.306,0:12:02.914
where these animals do[br]most of their yearly feeding

0:12:02.915,0:12:05.691
are inaccessible to them[br]due to noise displacement?

0:12:06.701,0:12:10.897
What if their food moves as well?[br]That's an entirely different problem.

0:12:14.193,0:12:18.545
As biologists continue to try and solve[br]this mystery and study this problem,

0:12:18.546,0:12:22.547
I can tell you that these animals,[br]beluga and narwhal,

0:12:22.548,0:12:24.614
have already taught me so much.

0:12:25.224,0:12:29.486
I know that we have to take[br]an even closer look at all this noise,

0:12:29.487,0:12:32.764
at all the noise that we're creating[br]in our environment,

0:12:32.765,0:12:35.149
and all the questions that it raises.

0:12:36.099,0:12:39.757
But we don't actually need to show[br]an answer in order to get attention.

0:12:39.758,0:12:42.536
Mads Peter, other colleagues and I[br]have a paper coming out

0:12:42.537,0:12:44.964
in the coming month on this exact topic.

0:12:45.494,0:12:50.005
And we're pretty excited[br]because it's a question still,

0:12:50.006,0:12:52.405
"What if? What if?"

0:12:52.406,0:12:56.333
But it's a question that we hope[br]will garner more attention.

0:12:57.264,0:12:59.137
Now, biologists and Inuit hunters agree

0:12:59.138,0:13:02.409
that noise pollution[br]in the Arctic is a concern.

0:13:02.410,0:13:06.135
Seismic, ship-based sounds are a concern.

0:13:06.136,0:13:09.038
Inuit hunters got[br]an injunction on Baffin Island

0:13:09.039,0:13:13.135
against seismic testing[br]in Lancaster Sound in 2010,

0:13:13.136,0:13:17.620
an area that they're currently negotiating[br]as a National Marine Conservation Area.

0:13:18.411,0:13:19.502
These animals,

0:13:19.503,0:13:24.160
part of an important subsistence harvest,[br]were way too critical to them,

0:13:24.161,0:13:30.111
and they didn't need an absolute proof[br]of negative impacts in order to stop it.

0:13:31.777,0:13:32.897
It's so easy for us

0:13:32.898,0:13:37.687
to focus on all these kind of big,[br]in-your-face environmental issues.

0:13:37.688,0:13:40.494
We're bombarded[br]with these images every day.

0:13:41.164,0:13:44.887
But I think it has never been more clear

0:13:44.888,0:13:48.200
that not all the damage[br]that we're doing can be seen.

0:13:48.930,0:13:53.439
And I think that in order to solve[br]this problem, to fix things going forward,

0:13:53.440,0:13:56.849
we're going to need to close[br]our eyes and open our ears.

0:13:56.850,0:13:58.320
Thank you.

0:13:58.321,0:14:00.159
(Applause)