The federal government is exploring changing rules about how ships travel in areas critical for North Atlantic right whales.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service stated in a recent news release that it’s seeking information about ways to “reduce unnecessary regulatory and economic burdens while ensuring responsible conservation practices.”
Environmental groups are concerned that any rollback to the speed regulations would threaten an already vulnerable population.
“These whales are still critically endangered,” said Nora Ives, a marine scientist with the nonprofit Oceana. “They still need this protection in place and, quite frankly, more protections.”
Only about 380 North Atlantic right whales remain in the ocean. They were hunted to near extinction by the 19th-century whaling industry, appealing as slow-moving targets with large amounts of blubber.
“They were named the right whale as their common name because they were the right whale to hunt,” Ives said.
The whales have since been protected through laws such as the Marine Mammal Protection and the Endangered Species acts. But the population struggled to rebound.
“Today we kill them unintentionally with vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear,” Ives said. “Those are the two main threats to the population, and they're entirely human and preventable.”
Since 2017, federal officials have been tracking what they call an “unusual mortality event,” which is a significant die-off of a marine mammal population.
At least 43 North Atlantic right whales have died in that time frame, including a 3-year-old female that washed ashore on a Virginia barrier island last month. At least 15 deaths were confirmed from vessel strikes. Many others were seriously injured.
The speed rule was created in 2008. It requires vessels 65 feet or longer to slow to 10 knots when moving through seasonal management areas, or habitats where whales are expected to be present. Ships are exempted if they have a safety issue.
North Atlantic right whales migrate seasonally, some traveling more than 1,000 miles between Canada and the southern U.S.
“They glide through the water with their mouths open, catching these huge swarms” of tiny crustaceans and zooplankton, Ives said. That makes it easy for them to hit objects or suck up fishing gear along the way.
Acoustic data shows that right whales are found in waters off New England and the Mid-Atlantic year-round, according to NOAA.
In Virginia, the seasonal management area is at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, off Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore, and is applied Nov. 1 to April 30.
The Coast Guard and NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement actively enforce the vessel speed regulations, using portable radar units, automatic identification systems and physical patrolling, the agency states on its website. Officials assessed $950,306 in civil penalties for vessels exceeding the limit across 56 cases in 2022 and 2023.
The government previously established a similar, voluntary speed limit for dynamic management areas, which are triggered by sightings of right whales. A third speed category, also voluntary, was added in 2020, triggered by acoustic detections of whales.
NOAA’s announcement this month was a notice of proposed rulemaking, the first stage of a lengthy process to develop and finalize a regulation. It’s now up for public comment through June 2.
In a news release, agency officials said they want to modernize regulations to reduce the risk of lethal vessel strikes.
“NOAA encourages economic prosperity in our oceans, and advancements in technology are increasingly allowing maritime commerce to coexist with endangered species,” said NOAA administrator Neil Jacobs.
“This action is an important step in implementing the President’s vision of adopting modern technologies, supporting American industry and promoting efficient and effective regulations.”
Ives agrees there are opportunities to use new strategies for protecting whales – but she urges the agency to use them to strengthen the rule.
“There are a number of technologies that are in development that may have some benefit for North Atlantic right whales, but at this point, none of those are proven to reduce the risk, as these other studies have proven that slowing down does reduce the risk,” Ives said.
There is some good news. March is the tail end of the whales’ calving season, and this year’s has been record-breaking, with 22 calves born so far.
