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Judge Says Sonar Hurts Whales, Orders NAVY to Quit Using it
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by ABC2 News | August 8, 2007 at 03:02 am
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An environmental group says the whales don't want to be exposed to the Navy's powerful sonar. And today a federal judge agreed.
The judge has banned the Navy from using high-power sonar during exercises in the Pacific, ruling the sound can hurt whales and other marine mammals.
She issued a temporary injunction, after the Natural Resources Defense Council filed suit on behalf of the sea creatures.
The NRDC says using the mid-frequency sonar in an ocean thick with marine life can cause mammals to beach themselves and behave in other harmful ways.
The Navy says it needs the sonar to fish out submarines, and says blocking its use potentially puts American lives and national security "at risk."
Its also says there is no evidence its practice sessions will hurt sea life.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (3)
at 06:23 on August 8th, 2007
Good for the Natural Resources Defense Council! Good for the judge! And good for the whales!
at 17:31 on August 8th, 2007
Hello,
My name is Petty Officer Shane Tuck, and I have some information on the Navy's perspective on this issue. The Navy issued the following release regarding the court decision:
Aug. 6, 2007
Court halts Navy’s ability to train realistically off Southern California
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Navy officials say they are deeply concerned by today’s federal court ruling that prohibits the Navy from training realistically before deploying Sailors and Marines potentially into harm’s way.
A <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />U.S. district judge in Los Angeles granted a preliminary injunction -- requested by the Natural Resources Defense Council and other environmental and animal protection groups -- that bars the Navy from using active sonar during critical joint task force training exercises and composite training unit exercises through 2009 in the ocean off Southern California.
“We are disappointed in the court’s decision and plan to appeal the imposition of an injunction,” said Mr. Don Schregardus, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for the environment. “The decision puts Sailors and Marines at risk by ordering the Navy to stop critical anti-submarine warfare training while we complete Environmental Impact Statements on our training ranges.”
Vice Adm. Samuel Locklear, the San Diego-based commander of the U.S. Third Fleet who oversees naval training in the Eastern Pacific, said, “To the extent this court decision prevents us from using active sonar, it potentially puts American lives and our national security at risk.”
The Navy has conducted similar exercises in the Southern California Operating Area for 70 years and has used similar active sonar technology for the past 40 years.
“In all those years, not a single stranding or injury of a marine mammal has been associated with the Navy’s use of MFA sonar in the Southern California Operating Area,” Locklear said.
Read full article at
http://www.cpf.navy.mil/news_images/0708/070806a.html
For more information, I recommend viewing<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
http://www.whalesandsonar.navy.mil/
at 18:23 on August 8th, 2007
I doubt very much that military personnel are in very much risk off the coast of Southern California. And just because the Navy has used similar active sonar technology for the past 40 years doesn't mean it hasn't been damaging to marine life, in particular, whales. And just because the Navy has not ever officially 'recognized' that their use of MFA sonar in the Southern California Operating Area has caused stranding or injury to a marine mammal doesn't mean it didn't happen. In fact, the judge based her verdict on a substantial body of scientific evidence that, in fact, it had. So thank you for the military perspective. But, as far as I'm concerned, it means twat.