We could lose Southern Resident orcas forever, Friend

Dear Friend, One oil spill would wipe out Southern Resident orcas. Help protect them and the planet and donate $27 to help us reach our urgent $3,000 goal! If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate $100 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Starving. Languishing. Grieving. Only 75 Southern Resident orcas remain. And they’re in a struggle to survive. Just one oil spill could put the final nail in the coffin for these gentle giants. But Big Oil and shipping megaprojects are putting profits over the survival of the only endangered species of killer whale in the United States. If they get away with their deadly dealings, it’s likely to seal the death sentence for Southern Resident orcas. [Don’t let Big Polluters wipe out the last 75 Southern Resident orcas and threaten our planet: Donate $27 today and help us reach our urgent $3,000 goal before the clock strikes midnight!]( Southern Resident orcas are already facing a chronic lack of food. And Big Oil and the shipping industry are driving forward two devastating megaprojects that would drive away even more Chinook salmon -- their main food source. Before long, an oil spill could completely wipe out the remaining 75 whales. We can’t let it come to that. These orcas function in close-knit, sensitive family communities known as pods. But when they lose a family member, their chances of survival plummet as their grief pushes them further into starvation. The losses of spirited Cappuccino, Marina the matriarch, and young Ripple were incredibly devastating. And while we have recent wonderful news that TWO baby orca births have just been confirmed, we don’t want to get too ahead of ourselves. Sadly, the mortality rate for newborns is as high as 50%, so these baby orcas won’t even be counted and named until they can survive at least a year after birth. Don’t let Southern Resident orcas grieve another death. Donate $27 and help us reach our $3,000 goal before midnight tonight for orcas and our planet. If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate $100 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Southern Resident orca populations have been declining for the last 17 years, suffering through pollution and starvation. If the two newborn orcas are going to have a chance at survival, they need enough food to keep them nourished and growing strong. Their main food source, Chinook salmon, were once abundant in their ecosystems. But the salmon have declined so much in the last decade that they are now considered endangered themselves. This is leading Southern Resident orcas to starvation, stress, and miscarriages. Two proposed megaprojects would take things from bad to worse. The Roberts Bank T2 shipping terminal project would significantly increase cargo ship traffic and scare away Chinook salmon from orca habitats. The noise from the massive cargo ships will also disrupt the orcas’ sonar hunting methods, disorienting and preventing them from finding the few salmon left in their waters. The expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline will also increase oil tanker traffic in Southern Resident critical habitat SEVEN-FOLD -- from one tanker a week to one per day! Worst of all, it will also be pushing millions of gallons per day of toxic tar sands oil -- the dirtiest kind -- out in oil tankers through this already delicate orca habitat. And we know that when you move oil, oil spills are practically a GUARANTEE. The endangered Southern Resident population is just one oil spill away from extinction. It’s only a matter of time, Friend. This is why we need to raise our voices and stand up to Big Oil and the shipping industry, showing them that we will not allow them to put private profit over the lives of precious wildlife and the ecosystems that rely on them. We can’t let Big Oil push vulnerable orcas further toward the brink -- the time to fight back is NOW. Rush your $27 donation today for orcas and the planet. If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate $100 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Did you know that orcas play a part in the air you breathe? That’s right, Friend. Orcas release nutrients for phytoplankton, which in turn provide half of the oxygen we breathe. But their impact doesn’t stop there. They absorb hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon each year. This flow of nutrients promotes healthy ecosystems and a functioning planet, which is why we must protect these orcas at all costs. Each death in these pods reduces the chances that the remaining orcas survive. With Marina’s death, her children are now three times more likely to die, while her grandchildren are SIX TIMES less likely to survive. With these 75 precious lives hanging on by a thread, we need to step up our fight to protect them. Southern Resident orcas are in perilous danger. You and I may be some of the last people to share the planet with these magnificent creatures if these disastrous megaprojects are allowed to move forward. That is why we need you by our side, Friend. If we don’t act soon, we could lose orcas forever. Friends of the Earth is doing everything we can to fight against greedy corporate interests and save these precious whales and our planet. But we can’t do it without your help. Your membership support today will go a long way toward protecting our planet and stopping these reckless megaprojects that have the potential to wipe out the remaining 75 orcas. Will you join us in this fight and rush your $27 membership contribution before the clock strikes midnight and we lose any more of these majestic creatures? Don’t let Big Oil and corporate greed exploit our oceans for profit. Donate $27 now to stand up for orcas and our planet and help us reach our $3,000 goal. If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: [Donate $27 immediately]( [Donate $50 immediately]( [Donate $100 immediately]( [Donate another amount]( Standing with you, Marcie Keever Oceans and vessels program director, Friends of the Earth Contact Us: Friends of the Earth U.S. Washington, D.C. | Berkeley, CA 1-877-843-8687 [Contact us]( Email Preferences: [Click here to unsubscribe]( Learn more: www.foe.org/news www.foe.org/about-us www.foeaction.org Connect: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Flickr]( © 2023, Friends of the Earth. All Rights Reserved. [supporter]