The Maui News

Vessel strikes and whale entanglements will be the subject of a presentation during a virtual meeting of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council from 9 a.m. to noon Thursday.

Guest speaker Michael Fischbach will give a presentation on “Global Mitigation of Vessel Strikes and Entanglement on Whales, and Why Hawaii is a Unique Case,” according to a news release.

Sanctuary staff will also provide brief updates to the advisory council, and Jens Currie, research primary council member, will give an update from the Voluntary Vessel Guidelines in Sanctuary Waters working group.

Public comment will be taken at about 11 a.m. Those who would like to comment during the virtual meeting can sign up in advance by selecting “yes” during the online registration. The order of comments will be based on the person’s date and time of registration. No public comments will be audio or video recorded.

The virtual meeting will be held using GoToWebinar.

Participants can register in advance at attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/915043675914685707. The webinar ID is 793-087-235.

Comments can also be sent to cindy.among-serrao@noaa.gov.

For a copy of the meeting agenda, email cindy.among-serrao@noaa.gov.

The sanctuary is administered by a partnership of NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and the State of Hawaii through the Division of Aquatic Resources. The sanctuary works to protect humpback whales through research, education, conservation and stewardship.