Our concern is based on three recent events, two of which involve naval sonar use.

Transcription

1 Page 1 AMERICAN CETACEAN SOCIETY BEAM REACH MARINE SCIENCE AND SUSTAINABILITY SCHOOL CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY EARTHJUSTICE EAST JEFFERSON COUNTY MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORK FRIENDS OF THE EARTH FRIENDS OF THE SAN JUANS INTERTRIBAL SINKYONE WILDERNESS COUNCIL KILLER WHALE TALES NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL ORCA NETWORK PEOPLE FOR PUGET SOUND PORT TOWNSEND MARINE SCIENCE CENTER PRESERVE OUR ISLANDS SEAL SITTERS MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORK SEATTLE MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORK WHATCOM MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORK WOLFTOWN MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORK Via Electronic and U.S. Mail Mr. Ray Mabus Secretary of the Navy 100 Navy Pentagon Room 4E739 Washington, DC ray.mabus@navy.mil Dear Secretary Mabus: On behalf of the undersigned organizations, who work to protect and restore marine wildlife throughout the Salish Sea and in the Pacific Ocean, we are writing to urge the Navy to strengthen its stewardship of endangered southern resident killer whales. In this, we call to your attention the attached Statement of Concern from 20 biologists and bioacousticians, who collectively represent many decades of expertise on these iconic, endangered whales. Our concern is based on three recent events, two of which involve naval sonar use. On February 6, 2012, the Canadian Naval frigate HMSC Ottawa conducted training exercises using mid-frequency active sonar in Canadian and U.S. waters near Victoria, BC. The area impacted during this exercise includes designated critical habitat, protected under the Endangered Species Act, for southern resident killer whales. Within 18 hours of sonar use, southern resident calls were heard in the area; within 36 hours, an unusually mixed group of members of two southern resident pods were sighted deep within the sheltered waters of Discovery Bay, west of Port Townsend, Washington. There are no prior records of southern residents sighted in Discovery Bay in 22 years of observation. The unprecedented appearance of these whales in these waters, combined with their recorded vocalizations not long after the Ottawa s training concluded, suggests that southern residents were present in the area and may have been significantly affected by the exercise but went completely undetected by the ship.

2 Page 2 On February 29, 2012, the U.S. Navy conducted pier-side sonar testing of the USS Shoup at the Everett Navy Yard. Captain, crew, and passengers aboard the Mukilteo-Clinton ferry reported being able to hear the sounds through the vessel s hull for approximately one hour, at times so loudly that the ferry agent could hear it from shore. The Shoup is the same destroyer involved in the May 2003 swept-channel exercise through Juan de Fuca Strait and Haro Strait, in which impacts on southern residents and two other species were documented. Testing continued on March 2, 7, and March 9. Gray whales, harbor porpoises, and seals occurred in the vicinity of the test site. Finally, on February 11, 2012, a 3-year female southern resident, known as L112 for her membership in the L pod, was discovered washed ashore near Long Beach on the outer Washington coast. The death of a juvenile female whale represents a major reproductive loss for the population. As the cause of death is still under investigation, there is an urgent need for information on all activities, military and otherwise, that might have contributed to her death. To our knowledge, the U.S. Navy has not yet provided information regarding its activities in U.S. waters in the days prior to L112 s death, except to state that it did not participate in Canadian sonar exercises during the previous week. Each of these incidents underscores the need for stricter protection of these whales, especially within their critical habitat. First, we urge the Navy to explicitly restrict sonar use from southern resident critical habitat in Washington State. 1 The Navy has affirmed that it will not conduct sonar training within the Greater Puget Sound area without advance approval from the Commander of the Pacific Fleet and the National Marine Fisheries Service. 75 Federal Register 69296, (Nov. 10, 2010). While we commend the Navy for instituting this procedure, there clearly remain exceptions that undercut its effectiveness in practice. For example, NMFS excluded pierside maintenance from its Northwest Training Range Complex authorization on the assumption that the source might emit only one or a few low amplitude pings, that marine mammals are seldom found nearby, and that the Pacific Fleet Commander has never authorized use of sonar in Puget Sound. 75 Fed. Reg , (Nov. 10, 2010). In light of the recent testing of the Shoup, none of these assumptions holds true yet pier-side sonar use continues unauthorized. Second, we urge the Navy, together with NOAA, to work with their Canadian counterparts to strengthen their mutual stewardship of the region s marine wildlife. Regardless of whether whales were present, the Ottawa s sonar training took place in or affected U.S. waters within designated critical habitat. It is simply unacceptable for Canadian naval operations to compromise the protections provided by the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and by the U.S. Navy s own procedures. 1 Because the southern residents often leave their designated critical habitat to search for food, this prohibition should also extend to waters near the mouths of salmon-bearing rivers, especially in the late winter and early spring months.

3 Page 3 Third, we request that the Navy disclose all of its activities within the Northwest Training Range Complex, from Newport, Oregon to Cape Flattery, Washington, during the period of February 1, 2012 through February 11, This information is vital for researchers investigating the circumstances of L112 s death, and for the general public to understand what, if any, naval activities may have been occurring in the area where she is likely to have died. Our groups recognize the importance of training needed to maintain military readiness. But we firmly believe that training can be accomplished in a manner that protects the endangered southern residents and other marine life. We welcome the opportunity to discuss these matters with you and your staff. Please do not hesitate to contact Michael Jasny at NRDC, Steve Mashuda at Earthjustice, or any of the undersigned organizations. Sincerely, Michael Jasny Steve Mashuda Senior Policy Analyst Earthjustice Natural Resources Defense Council 705 Second Ave 4479 W. 5th Avenue Suite 203 Vancouver, BC V6R1S4 Seattle, WA x1027 Fax: Fax: mjasny@nrdc.org smashuda@earthjustice.org Cheryl M. McCormick, Ph.D. American Cetacean Society Scott Veirs Beam Reach Marine Science and Sustainability School Uko Gorter President American Cetacean Society, Puget Sound Chapter Miyoko Sakashita Senior Attorney, Oceans Director Center for Biological Diversity 2 To the extent necessary, the Navy may consider this a request under the Freedom of Information Act, ( FOIA ), 5 U.S.C. 552, and its implementing regulations.

4 Page 4 Marcie Keever Oceans & Vessels Project Director Friends of the Earth Priscilla Hunter Chairwoman InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council Ukiah, CA Howard Garrett Susan Berta Orca Network Amy Carey Preserve Our Islands Vashon, WA Robin Lindsey Seal Sitters Marine Mammal Stranding Network Rachel Mayer Seattle Marine Mammal Stranding Network Kyle Loring Staff Attorney Friends of the San Juans Jeff Hogan Killer Whale Tales Heather Trim Director of Policy People For Puget Sound Chrissy McLean Marine Program Coordinator Port Townsend Marine Science Center East Jefferson County Marine Mammal Stranding Network Mariann Carrasco Whatcom Marine Mammal Stranding Network Coordinator Wolftown Marine Mammal Stranding Network Vashon, WA Cc: Dr. Jane Lubchenco NOAA Administrator Office of the Undersecretary, US Department of Commerce 1401 Constitution Ave, NW Room 7316 Washington, DC jane.lubchenco@noaa.gov The Honorable Hillary Clinton Secretary of State U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street NW Washington, DC clintonhr@state.gov

5 Page 5 Admiral Cecil D. Haney Commander U.S. Pacific Fleet cpf.webmaster@navy.mil Rear Admiral Douglass T. Biesel Commander Navy Region Northwest douglass.biesel@navy.mil The Honourable Peter MacKay Minister of National Defence National Defence Headquarters dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca Lieutenant Diane Larose Navy Public Affairs diane.larose2@forces.gc.ca Senator Patty Murray 448 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C Senator Maria Cantwell 311 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC Congressman Norm Dicks 2467 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC Congressman Mike Thompson 231 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C