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Gerardo Lemus
Dr. Becky Boesch
Human/Nature
May 11, 2014
Final Research Paper- US NAVY Sonar Testing
Marine mammals rely on sound as much as land animals rely on sight because they use it
for hunting, migrating, communicating and searching for mates. Their habitat has been stable and
healthy, but for the past century or so that balance has been tempered with by us humans and all
our sound engulfing machines which can emit low, medium, and high frequency sounds. These
can range from submarines to big commercial ships. If allowed the use of medium and high
frequency sonar they will have great consequences to marine mammals. There are a lot of things
that contribute to the sound pollution and several types of sonar. Things that are polluting the
water with sound can range from a power boat to the sonar devices the Navy uses. We are seeing
the start of the negative effects of sonar because of whale beaching in areas where the NAVY
ships use sonar. The US Navy is a great contributor to this problem and is the one that is the least
supervised agencies that uses sonar. In order to try and save marine mammals, The US Navy
should not be allowed or to use the very least amount of sonar because its causing the death of
many whales and other species which rely on sonar.
The NAVY uses this area for several things, some of which are anti-submarine warfare
exercises involving tracking aircraft and sonar; surface-to-air gunnery and missile exercises; air-
to-surface bombing exercises; sink exercises; and extensive testing for several new weapons
systems (Earthjustice, Para. 2). But the law suit didnt help at all; in late 2010 the NMFS gave
the NAVY a five year permit of expanded naval activity that will harm or take marine
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mammals and other life (Earthjustice, para. 3) They gave the five year permit to the Navy
because according to the Navy the use of sonar is necessary to detect quiet submarines from
foreign nations.
The effect that the use of sonar causes to marine mammals has been shown in
experiments, the conclusion that one experiment of killer whales concluded that the species
reacted to sonar like sound in odd behavior as stated by Miller:
Though our sample size of experiments was small, the dose-response curves derived from
our data provide experimentally supported indications of the risk of behavioral response
of free-ranging killer whales to sonar. The curve we derived differs substantially from
that used by the U.S. Navy in its environmental impact assessments for this species
(Miller, pg 991)
In this experiment they tested four groups of killer whales on a controlled exposure to sonar. In
six out of the eight trials they noticed change in speed and direction to try and avoid the sonar
(Miller, pg 975), which I the long run can have negative impact in their migration patterns and
other aspects of their day to day routine. He goes on to say that these particular group of whales
might be sensitive to sonar but that other experiments with sperm whale, which are less sensitive,
have produced similar results.
Sonar is used for several things by several different groups. According to Michael Jasny
the main perpetrators of this problem are military, commercial and industrial origins, not only
this but most of the leading contributors to the problem are not currently regulated. With a
few exceptions, the US Navy has not sought to comply with the MMPA, on its sonar training
exercises (Jasny, Michael page VI). The MMPA or the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972
protects the marine mammals from harm which the Navy isnt complying with because their use
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of sonar is harming the marine mammals. The Navy has been using two types of sonar, mid-
frequency tactical sonar and low-frequency sonar. As stated by Michael Jasny a senior policy
analyst for the Natural Resources Defense council a nonprofit environmental organization that
helps protect our environment, The low frequency sonar can travel hundreds of miles at
intensities strong enough to affect marine mammals (Jasny, Michael, pg IV). Sonar is a widely
used device. It is used for mapping out the sea floor, finding oil reserves out in the ocean, and by
the Navy for military purposes such as submarine warfare training in real life environments. In
order to try and protect these animals the NRDC and other environmentalist groups have gone to
court against the Navy to try get restrictions regarding the use of sonar in areas where marine
mammals reside. The ones being sued is the Navy because they are the group that hurts the
marine mammals the most and the one that is trying to do the least to prevent this. The Navy has
conducted their own research and has not changed their practices even though their research
shows them they should as stated by Morgana Matus:
The Navy conducted their research in preparation for an application to the National
Marine Fisheries Service to allow testing in these waters. By the Navys estimations,
their live simulations could kill 186 whales and dolphins off of the east coast, and 155
near Hawaii and southern California. Serious injuries for mammals off the east coast
could number upwards of 11,267 with 1.89 million minor problems. Changes in
behavior, such as disorientation and swimming in the wrong direction, are estimated to
reach 20 million occurrences. For southern California and Hawaii, serious injuries are
projected to hit 2,039, minor injuries, while 7.7 million instances of behavioral shifts are
expected. (Matus, Morgana para. 1)
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Even after their own research reveals the damage that the marine mammal populations would
experience if the testing proceeded they have done minimal things to try and prevent this. And it
isnt the first time that the Navy has done something like this. Earlier that same year they
conducted the test, they rejected the California Coastal Commissions request to limit their sonar
training, with complete knowledge that certain marine mammals would be present during these
testing times (Matus, Morgana, para. 3). The Navy has several locations for testing, but the one
that Californias coast is part of is the Hawaii-Southern California testing area. This area has 3
complexes: The Hawaii Range complex, the Southern California Complex range and the Silver
Strand Training complex (NAVY, par. 1-5). All these complexes cover a lot of terrain of the
Californian coast. The Navy states that this training facility is of great importance because of its
location: it is close to the homeport of naval forces in California and other locations of
importance, as well as the environment found in those complexes. Found in those three
complexes are environments that can be used to replicate the landscape of other locations around
the globe which is important for deployment preparations. The use of mid-frequency sonar has
been the cause of mass stranding all around the world; from the Bahamas to Spain and many
others including Hawaii in the NAVYs testing area. In 2004 the NAVYs use of sonar caused
200 plus melon-headed whales to beach themselves in Hanalei Bay (Matus, Morgana, para.3).
In order to try and address the problem of sonar to marine mammals on the US west
coast, Earthjustice, the NRDC and other groups filed a law suit in the US District court system
challenging The National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS):
Earthjustice, representing InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council, Center for Biological
Diversity, Friends of the Earth, Friends of the San Juans, Natural Resources Defense
Council (NRDC), and People For Puget Sound, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for
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the District of Northern California challenging NMFSs approval of the Navys training
activities in its Northwest Training Range Complex. The lawsuit calls on NMFS to
mitigate anticipated harm to marine mammals and biologically critical areas within the
training range that stretches from Northern California to the Canadian border.
(Earthjustice, para. 1)
In order to try and solve this real issue the NRDC has gone to court, not to try and ban the
sonar use by the NAVY, but to try and limit it. In the case WINTER v. NRDC, the NRDC filed
the law suit against the NAVY because it had failed to meet the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) prior to planning commencing a series of training
exercises over a two year period (McCarty, Pg 490-491) Which the NAVY responded that the
training was necessary because without it they would be vulnerable to quiet diesel submarines
operated by unfriendly nations (McCarty, Pg 491). Like many other cases the environmentalist
group lost their case against the US NAVY.
Even though they have had many losses the NRDC addresses many possible solutions to
reduce the death of the marine mammals. In Sounding the Depths II, They address a total of
eighteen agreements several countries are part of to try and reduce the harm they cause to the
marine life in ocean waters. Out of those eighteen the US is only part of six (Jasny, Michale,
Para. 56-58). Being part of these agreements would help a lot in this issue. In addition a possible
solution would be to test sonar during the year of the part of the year that the species isnt in the
area, as well as avoiding their breeding grounds and their migration paths.