War on The Homefront: Whales & Sonar
by Evil Shannon | Published on December 12th, 2007, 9:10 pm | Science
I guess war does really affect everyone. It is here on our soil. It's affecting the seas. While The State of Appeals Court agrees that we have an honest concern for our scarce whales and other marine life but the fact we are fighting a war in two countries takes precedence over the ban of Naval mid frequency sonar. That was the explanation for reversing the ban on Aug. 31, 2007. You know the same week all these dead blue whales started washing up in my hometown. Ironic huh? I grew a little huffy when I decided to go on my own little hunt and learned some very interesting information. You see I guess I've been in the dark because the Navy is not about to fess up and the Bush administration has been withholding even more from us than we thought. They don't want people like me jumping on the "save the whale" bandwagon. We would just get in the way. So besides a few nonchalant blips in the media, it's all been hush hush. At first I was focusing my research to the Channel Islands which is where the latest news has occurred. Interestingly enough I have discovered that our very own NC Outer Banks is also in danger.
You come to your own conclusions, but let me share with you what I have found. In the beginning of Aug. the Navy was sued for violating three Acts. Those three Acts were: the National Environmental Policy Act, the Marine Mammals Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act. The Navy neglected to prepare an environmental assessment, and failed to seek a "small take permit" from the NMFS. The Navy's use of mid frequency sonar for testing and training purposes in the Channel Islands was banned.
After the government would not allow clear evidence in the court of the consequences of this mid frequency sonar, on Aug. 31, 2007 the Court of Appeals reversed the ban. The Navy then used this technology just off of San Clemente Island in the Channel Islands. Guess what? Just like magic dead and disoriented mammals start washing up on shore and running into boats.
The Navy and Marines use this mid frequency sonar to locate submarines and other underwater objects from their floating vessels. In training it is used in "coordinated deployment and preparedness exercises".
Now let me share with you what it does to the affected whale, porpoise, etc. Why do they wash up with blood streaming from their eyes and ear canal? Basically they suffer from an embolism in their bloodstream. They wash up with golf ball sized lesions in their organ tissue. Ouch! Often they are forced to the surface too quickly and they endure what humans call "the bends". Often they are disoriented and ill, losing innate migratory direction and beach themselves in mass strandings. They cannot care for themselves for basic survival.
There are some basic rules of pure common sense those fighting this ban wish for the Navy to follow in order to reduce the destructive impact. The location is the first recommendation. If the Navy could avoid highly populated areas of the sea, taking into consideration migratory paths and feeding and breeding grounds. They could test first using a low frequency to move any threatened creatures before increasing to active sonar. Along these lines slowly increasing the volume to give enough time for whales to flee. If you see a whale don't proceed until it's passed a safe distance. The Navy is refusing to meet these precautionary recommendations.
Does that beach above look familiar? It should; it's ours. In 2005, 37 whales of three different kinds washed up right here, on our very own Outer Banks. Ironically again, coincidental timing with the Navy's use of the mid frequency sonar just off our coast. What was the Navy's response to this? What else of course but that it was an: "unlikely connection". These incidents are recorded all around the world .It's been happening in Hawaii, the Canary Islands and Bahamas. Bush wasn't lying about "holding steadfast". I just never assumed he meant this. The Navy and the Bush Administration are holding their ground and making it impossible to do anything about it.
I was crushed to find out about this going on in the place I hold so dear in the Channel Islands. I am even more upset to learn that this is going on without a fight right here in the place I now call home. It's big time here. The Navy plans ( if not already in effect) to establish 500 square nautical miles in the NC Outer Banks as a range for this testing. I'm so frustrated and so angry that both of my homes are being used this way without our permission. If more people knew, we would get in the way of the government's quiet procedures. I want to shout louder than the percussion of a Saturn V Rocket blast. That's the volume of this sonar is and we just have to shout louder! I don't want my beach at home to be known only for the place all the dead whales lie. This has gone on far too long. No More!
