Toxic Orcas: Chemical Pathways and Whale Discourses along the Salish Sea

• In Event: Beastly Bodies and Toxic Pathways

Abstract

When a dead orca washes up on the shores of the Salish Sea, their body is legally classified as toxic waste. Southern Resident orcas – perhaps the most cherished and researched wild animal populations in the world – may also be among the most endangered. As these orcas have emerged as iconic symbols of Pacific Northwest nature, they have shed the demonization that characterized early twentieth century attitudes. But without toxicological remediation or concerted climate action, this shift in cultural attitudes may be largely wasted, and the Salish Sea orca populations could soon be just another extinction story.

My proposed paper will take up this problem: how is it that these orca can be so adored yet simultaneously dumped on? This project involves weaving together two methodological approaches: a material flow analysis of the specific pathways of industrial polymers and a discursive history that tracks how the words that have accumulated around these orcas have transformed over the last century. Where attention to the biophysical flows of the toxic materials offers a means to sketch the ecological connections between industrial polymers and orca bodies, a linguistic analysis of how word frequencies, textures and narrative themes change over time will provide a window into the relationship between toxicological knowledge production and changing popular understandings. Attending to these linguistic shifts in both scientific literatures and popular discourses will orient a discussion of why toxicity remains largely invisible even as orcas have emerged as objects of incredible salience and empathetic engagement. Ultimately, I hope to demonstrate that material and cultural historical approaches are both essential for making sense of the complex interactions, unfamiliar durations, and public policy challenges of toxic megafauna.

Author

• Mark Werner, University of British Columbia