ESQUIMALT, B.C. — The Royal Canadian Navy has announced that the land-based demolition range at Bentinck Island will be in use from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays from Wednesday through Friday, Dec. 17.
Bentinck Island is near Race Rocks in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and is used as a terrestrial demolition range by the Canadian Armed Forces.
Local residents likely will be unaware of the activities except on days when environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and wind direction affect how far the sound will travel.
Training events at Bentinck Island are guided by strict mitigation measures and procedures to limit acoustic impacts to marine mammals. Operations at Bentinck Island utilize an expert third-party marine mammal observer to advise military staff when the range is clear of whales prior to demolitions. Events are delayed if whales are observed in or transiting toward the range, and activities do not resume until the observer provides the all clear.
