Groups Demand Urgent Rules to Protect Whales from Ships
2023-10-17
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1An alliance of environmental groups is calling for new federal rules to protect an endangered whale from crashes with ships.
2The groups presented their demands in a document, called a petition, provided to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on September 28.
3The action aims to protect the North Atlantic right whale, which has long been considered endangered.
4The population of these extremely large sea animals has decreased sharply in recent years.
5Just 340 are believed to be alive today.
6Officials at NOAA have said ship collisions are among the most serious threats to the survival of the whale.
7One rule the environmental groups are calling for would seek to prevent ship strikes by making more ships slow down for whales.
8NOAA has yet to release a final updated speed rule although it proposed new rules more than a year ago, the groups said.
9Environmentalists have appealed for urgency in enacting the measure.
10They say it is important to approve new rules before the upcoming birthing season.
11At that time of year, the whales migrate hundreds of miles from waters off New England and Canada to areas off the coasts of Florida and Georgia.
12"Even one ship strike would bring these whales closer to extinction, but speed limits can help prevent that," said Kristen Monsell.
13She is a legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the groups that prepared the petition to NOAA.
14"Federal officials can't sit back and do nothing while right whales are in danger," Monsell told The Associated Press.
15Katie Wagner is a spokesperson for NOAA.
16She said she expects the agency to announce its final action on the proposed rule sometime this year.
17That means the rule could be publicized during the middle of calving season and may not be put into effect until even later.
18Wagner said NOAA knows about the petition but has a policy not to comment on legal matters.
19The agency is considering expanding "slow zones" off the U.S. East Coast, and also requiring more ships to obey those rules.
20NOAA denied a request from environmentalists last year to immediately put new rules in place.
21At the time, the agency said in public documents that it was considering "long-term, substantive" measures to reduce whale strikes by ships.
22Wagner said NOAA received more than 90,000 comments on the proposed rule and would use those to decide on its final action.
23Right whales were once common off the U.S. East Coast.
24But the animals fell in numbers after years of heavy hunting activities.
25The whales have long been protected under the Endangered Species Act.
26Right whales are also at risk of becoming accidentally entangled in fishing equipment.
27Proposed restrictions to prevent such entanglements have been the subject of a legal case between the federal government and fishermen.
28I'm Bryan Lynn.
1An alliance of environmental groups is calling for new federal rules to protect an endangered whale from crashes with ships. 2The groups presented their demands in a document, called a petition, provided to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on September 28. 3The action aims to protect the North Atlantic right whale, which has long been considered endangered. The population of these extremely large sea animals has decreased sharply in recent years. Just 340 are believed to be alive today. 4Officials at NOAA have said ship collisions are among the most serious threats to the survival of the whale. One rule the environmental groups are calling for would seek to prevent ship strikes by making more ships slow down for whales. NOAA has yet to release a final updated speed rule although it proposed new rules more than a year ago, the groups said. 5Environmentalists have appealed for urgency in enacting the measure. They say it is important to approve new rules before the upcoming birthing season. At that time of year, the whales migrate hundreds of miles from waters off New England and Canada to areas off the coasts of Florida and Georgia. 6"Even one ship strike would bring these whales closer to extinction, but speed limits can help prevent that," said Kristen Monsell. She is a legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the groups that prepared the petition to NOAA. "Federal officials can't sit back and do nothing while right whales are in danger," Monsell told The Associated Press. 7Katie Wagner is a spokesperson for NOAA. She said she expects the agency to announce its final action on the proposed rule sometime this year. That means the rule could be publicized during the middle of calving season and may not be put into effect until even later. 8Wagner said NOAA knows about the petition but has a policy not to comment on legal matters. The agency is considering expanding "slow zones" off the U.S. East Coast, and also requiring more ships to obey those rules. 9NOAA denied a request from environmentalists last year to immediately put new rules in place. At the time, the agency said in public documents that it was considering "long-term, substantive" measures to reduce whale strikes by ships. Wagner said NOAA received more than 90,000 comments on the proposed rule and would use those to decide on its final action. 10Right whales were once common off the U.S. East Coast. But the animals fell in numbers after years of heavy hunting activities. The whales have long been protected under the Endangered Species Act. 11Right whales are also at risk of becoming accidentally entangled in fishing equipment. Proposed restrictions to prevent such entanglements have been the subject of a legal case between the federal government and fishermen. 12I'm Bryan Lynn. 13The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 14_____________________________________________ 15Words in This Story 16extinct - adj. no longer existing; when a living thing disappears from the Earth forever 17calving -n. a word for when certain animals give birth 18substantive - adj. important or serious 19entangle - v. to cause something to become caught in something such as a net or ropes