Joint Press Release
Video highlights progress of ongoing multilateral collaboration to protect sperm whales from ship strikes in the Kythira Strait
The SAvE Whales project (System for the Avoidance of ship-strikes with Endangered Whales) has successfully completed its second year of implementation, marking significant progress in developing and testing a complementary and innovative early warning system to prevent ship collisions with sperm whales in the Kythira Strait.
The project is being implemented through the collaboration of the Hellenic Ministry of Environment and Energy, the Natural Environment and Climate Change Organization (NECCA), OceanCare, and The Green Tank, with the scientific contribution of the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute and the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (FORTH). This work follows Greece’s commitment announced at the 9th Our Ocean Conference and the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation among the partners on June 18, 2024.
Sperm whales—the largest toothed whales on the planet—are an iconic but endangered species in the Mediterranean. Fewer than 200 individuals are estimated to remain in the eastern basin, a population perilously close to extinction. Their main threat today is collisions with passing vessels moving through their core habitat. The SAvE Whales project employs cutting-edge technology to detect sperm whales and alert ships in real time, making a tangible contribution to reducing collisions and protecting the species.
Field activities and progress
During the project’s second year:
- The second year of field research west of Kythira was successfully completed. The Institute of Applied and Computational Mathematics of FORTH deployed a pilot buoy during the summer, collecting key data—such as power sufficiency and 4G broadband signal quality for communication and data transfer, as well as measurements of environmental noise levels (both natural and human-made)—which will inform the optimal design of the upgraded system.
- The Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute conducted systematic visual and acoustic surveys of sperm whales in the wider Kythira area, collecting data to evaluate the acoustic environment and verify the system’s effectiveness.
- The SAvE Whales Steering Committee met five times during the first year following the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation in June 2024, confirming the strong collaboration and coordination among all partners and contributors.
- The project’s progress was presented at a side event during the 10th Our Ocean Conference in Busan, South Korea, one year after its announcement as part of Greece’s 21 commitments at the 9th Our Ocean Conference in Athens. During the event, Arcadia Shipmanagement, a leading Greek shipping company, reaffirmed its commitment to test the system during its development phase.
- The main milestones of SAvE Whales’ second year were captured on video, showcasing the project’s most important actions and achievements. The video is available here.
Next steps
The main goal for the coming years is the effective development, full operation, and establishment of the SAvE Whales system, with the aim of delivering it to NECCA by 2028, which will then assume its operation, monitoring, and maintenance. In the coming months, data collected during the first two years will be processed and analyzed to further develop and optimize the system.
At the same time, informative meetings with competent public authorities and exploratory discussions with representatives of the shipping sector are underway, aiming at joint preparation for the system’s integration into relevant regulatory frameworks and its incorporation into ships’ operational procedures.
Note to editors
A population of sperm whales was discovered in the Hellenic Trench by the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute in 1998. Vessel strikes were soon identified by them as the main threat for the survival of this endangered population.
SAvE Whales, which stands for System for the Avoidance of ship-strikes with Endangered Whales, was first developed in a pilot project between 2019 and 2021 by Pelagos and FORTH, fully funded by OceanCare. It offers a pioneering technology, serving as a complementary response measure to the threat of vessel strikes.
A Memorandum of Understanding, signed in June 2024 by the Greek Ministry of Environment and Energy, the Natural Environment and Climate Change Agency, OceanCare, and The Green Tank, provides for the scaling up and full implementation of the system in the Kythira Strait by 2028.
