The Maritime Authority of Panama (AMP), the Ministry of the Environment (MiAmbiente), the Authority of Tourism (ATP), the Aquatic Resources Authority of Panama (ARAP) and the National Service Aeronaval (SENAN) have joined forces to inform the legal framework for whale watching.
As part of actions to preserve humpback whales, spotted dolphins and common bottlenose dolphins which come to Panama’s waters to have their babies, proving a major attraction for domestic and foreign visitors alike, a first interinstitutional workshop was held.
The joint effort of these institutions has resulted in the execution of Resolution 0144-2022 of the July 12, 2022, “By which the regulation of the sighting activity of cetaceans in the jurisdictional waters of the Republic of Panama” so as to guarantee the conservation and proper management of all species in the country.
This first workshop aimed to make those present aware of the content of the abovementioned resolution, in addition to familiarising them with the registration, inspection, training and other topics related to those interested in promoting or exercising whale watching.
“We are in the whale migratory season and it is our duty to take care of and protect them,” indicated the Director General of Ports and Maritime Industries Auxiliaries (DGPIMA) of the AMP, Max Florez. “This is why the AMP has issued circular DGPIMA-014-DECCP-2024 where vessels are urged to merchant vessels and other vessels to navigate at a speed not exceeding 10 knots, from 1 from August to November 30 of each year. This guideline seeks to reduce the risk of injury and fatal collisions with cetaceans.
This recommendation applies to ships that navigate the Gulf of Panama both entering such as leaving the channel or simply passing through the areas established by the IMO since 2014. The Republic of Panama is part of the cetacean protection block, established through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna Wildlife (CITES) and the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling of 1948. Panama also enacted Law 13 of May 5, 2005, which established the country’s marine corridor for the protection and conservation of marine mammals.
