Declaration/Petition

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Call for State recognition of the inherent rights of the Southern Resident Orcas

Southern Resident Orcas are culturally, spiritually, and economically important to the people of Washington State and the world. However, despite legal protections for nearly two decades, the population continues to decline with fewer than 80 individuals left.

We stand at a critical juncture and still have an opportunity to restore the population to health.

Earth Law Center and Legal Rights for the Salish Sea are leading a campaign calling for State recognition of the Southern Resident Orcas’ inherent rights, including the right to:

    • life,
    • autonomy,
    • culture,
    • free and safe passage,
    • adequate food supply from naturally occurring sources,
    • and freedom from conditions causing physical, emotional or mental harm, including a habitat degraded by noise, pollution and contamination.

Legally speaking, recognizing the Southern Residents’ rights means that we must consider their wellbeing and needs in addition to human interests in decision making, and that they will have a voice in a variety of forums, including courts. Through their human guardians acting on their behalf and in their best interests, the Orcas will be able to express what they need to exist, thrive, and evolve.

Why Rights?

Earth-centered laws such as those based on the “Rights of Nature” are emerging worldwide to transform our relationship with Nature, of which we are an inseparable part. Central to a “Rights of Nature” framework is the recognition that Nature is a living being and rights-bearing entity.

We have the opportunity to join the growing movement of communities across the United States and Internationally who are speaking up for rights of all sentient beings.

Both San Francisco and Malibu passed resolutions protecting the rights of whales and dolphins in their coastal waters; the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians passed a resolution recognizing the sacred obligation to the Southern Resident Orcas “our relatives under the waves”; the ʔEsdilagh First Nation in Canada enacted the ʔElhdaqox Dechen Ts’edilhtan (ʔEsdilagh  Sturgeon River Law –also known as the Fraser River) that states the people, animals, fish, plants, the nen (“lands”), and the tu (“waters”) have rights; New Zealand’s Government legally recognizes animals as ‘sentient’ beings; the Uttarakhand High Court of India ruled that the entire animal kingdom are legal entities with rights; and the United Kingdom now recognizes lobsters, crabs, and octopus as sentient beings; AND MANY MORE!

We have a responsibility to conserve, protect and defend the Southern Residents and the ecosystems upon which they depend. We must demand immediate actions to protect and restore the Orcas’ rights by addressing their main threats to survival. At a more fundamental level, recognizing the Southern Residents’ inherent rights shows that we as a society value them as living beings. It shows that when we say we want to prevent their extinction, we mean it. 

The undersigned do hereby certify that the foregoing Declaration was duly adopted.

*This declaration was created collaboratively with:


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Declaration of the Rights of the Southern Resident Orcas

Declaration of the Rights of the Southern Resident Orcas

We, the peoples and natural communities of the Salish Sea, do DECLARE the following:

Eight million people and the survival of countless species depend on a healthy Salish Sea. Yet human-induced impacts such as climate change, ocean acidification, increased shipping traffic, dams and other fish passage barriers, as well as wastewater and sewage runoff have contributed to the pollution and degradation of the Salish Sea.

The Southern Resident orcas are critically endangered with only 74 remaining at the time of this declaration (December, 2018). Their survival is dependent on healthy and functioning ecosystems, including the Salish Sea, the Columbia River Basin, and the lower Snake River Watershed.

Our legal system has proven inadequate in addressing the threats to these ecosystems and to the Southern Resident orcas.Therefore, we need to join other communities and governments worldwide in adopting a new framework for environmental protection based upon the recognition that nature has inherent rights and should be heard as a real party and interest in legal actions affecting her rights.

Because the Southern Resident orcas do not acknowledge the border between the United States and Canada, or the difference between such governments and Tribal and First Nations, collective and collaborative action is needed to recover the species.

Therefore, we do PROCLAIM that:

Nature and all living beings have inherent rights to exist, flourish, evolve, and regenerate, and to restoration, recovery and preservation. This includes the Southern Resident orcas and the Salish Sea.

The rights of the Southern Resident orcas include, but are not limited to, the right to:
life
autonomy
free and safe passage
adequate food supply from naturally occurring sources
and freedom from conditions causing physical, emotional or mental harm, including a habitat degraded by noise, pollution and contamination.

We have a responsibility to conserve, protect and defend Nature, the Southern Residents and the Salish Sea; and we need a transformational shift in our behavioral, societal, governance and economic relationships in order to live in harmony with Nature.
In accordance with our connection and interdependence with the Salish Sea, we DEMAND the following:

~That national, state, provincial, and local governments and their citizens follow the Tribal and First Nations in recognizing the inherent rights of the Southern Resident orcas and the ecosystems upon which they depend.
~The immediate creation of a stewardship board for the Salish Sea based on a rights of nature framework, including guardian representation for the Southern Resident orcas; and
~The immediate action to support the Southern Residents’ needs, and address the main threats to survival, which scientists have identified as prey availability, vessel and noise disturbance, and pollution.

Immediate actions include:
~Restoring wild Chinook salmon populations and their habitat;
~Reducing noise and disturbance in Southern Resident orca habitat;
~Decreasing the level of pollution and contaminants throughout the range of Southern Resident orcas.

The undersigned do hereby certify that the foregoing Declaration was duly adopted.

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3,138 Ms. Amy H. Port Townsend, WA 98368 ?? May 07, 2022
3,137 Ms Britta V. Olympia, WA 98506 United States Apr 27, 2022
3,136 Ms Stephanie R. Friday Harbor, Washington 98250 United States Apr 27, 2022
3,135 Mr Dennis K. Vashon, Washington 98070 ?? Apr 27, 2022
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3,127 Mx. Alex F. Seattle, WA 98103 United States Mar 01, 2022
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