The NRDC (National Resources Defense Council) announced in its Fall issue of “Nature’s Voice” that at the most recent United Nations Ocean Conference, 37 countries announced the launch of the first-ever high-level political initiative to tackle ocean noise pollution on a global scale.
Led by Panama and Canada, with support provided by NRDC and other partners, the High Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean has laid out an ambitious roadmap to tackle a problem that is a significant and growing threat to marine life, interfering with the ability of whales and other animals to communicate, navigate, and find food.
Vessel strikes are the leading cause of death to whales and marine life. Other causes include starvation, disease, old age, and sonar sounds from military vessels that disrupt their ability to navigate in the waters for migration, hunting, and overall everyday existence. The vessel carriers are in the thousands, delivering cargo to and from ports across the world’s oceans, as well as other boats that contribute to the fatal collisions.
Click on the tab below for The Guardian article: Dodging New York traffic: how hundreds of whales are on a collision course with ships and boats.
Humpbacks are thriving in the warm waters off the coast of Manhattan, but maritime restrictions have not kept pace.
Speeding Ships Are Killing North Atlantic Right Whales – a short video.