Annual Conference 2020 - Monitoring Threats to Marine Mammals at Sea

IMarEST TV recording from the 6 July 2020 IMarEST Annual Conference Monitoring Threats to Marine Mammals at Sea, presented by the Professor William Megill, BSc (McGill), PhD (UBC), CMarSci, FIMarEST. A marine biologist and engineer with nearly thirty years’ experience at sea working on the biology and ecology of whales, dolphins, sea turtles, shrimp and jellyfish.

Marine mammals - whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions, otters, dugongs and polar bears - face increasingly severe threats to their existence. Entanglements in fishing gear, competition for dwindling fish stocks, ship strikes, acoustic and seismic exploration, offshore installations, military exercises, pollution, global warming, current redirection and ocean acidification - these are just some of the threats faced by these animals in our increasingly busy oceans.

Threats need monitoring and mitigation strategies. A service industry of Marine Mammal Observers and Passive Acoustic Monitors has developed to address these needs, but standards are inconsistent, quality is often difficult to assure, and safety is often not a priority. The Marine Mammals SIG will address these issues first as it gets started, looking to the Institute’s long history of professionalisation of seafaring work for advice and guidance on the coordinated development of worldwide standards for marine mammal protection and mitigation.

Watch Now on IMarEST TV (IMarEST Members only)

About IMarEST Annual Conference

Building on last year’s inaugural event, the 2020 Annual Conference will feature multiple streams covering many of the hottest topics in the marine realm, from the challenges of decarbonisation and a wider shift to greener, more sustainable ways of operating to developments in the naval sector and the outlook for autonomous systems.

Over the course of two weeks, we will utilise a mixture of live formats – webinars, live debates, 1-2-1 talks with experts, and panel discussions - to provide delegates a flexible and unrivalled opportunity to participate in debates, to learn about subjects outside their day-to-day work, and to make new professional connections.

Although the change to a virtual format was made primarily in response to Covid-19, it will allow international members who ordinarily would be unable to travel to London and attend in person to fully take part in proceedings and bring a global voice to the event.

To maximise interaction and engagement, we encourage all delegates to download our new event app, which will help you keep track of what’s happening when, take part in live polls, access supporting content and network with other participants and sponsors.