Whale of a problem

Photo: The Canadian Press

The federal fisheries minister is expected to announce new measures today aimed at protecting North Atlantic right whales.

Dominic LeBlanc is planning to outline the initiatives this morning in Moncton, N.B.

They come after 17 of the highly endangered whales died off the east coasts of Canada and the United States last year, 12 of them in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Many of the whales died as a result of blunt force trauma after being struck by boats, while other deaths have been attributed to fishing gear entanglements.

A temporary speed limit was imposed on ships in the gulf in August, but was lifted earlier this month after no whales had been spotted.

LeBlanc had also ordered boats to give right whales a 100-metre buffer zone last November to protect mammals in the gulf.