Why It Matters: The recreational boating and fishing community understands the importance of protecting North Atlantic right whales (NARW) and fully supports finding innovative ways to avoid any vessel collision with marine mammals. However, a rule proposed in late 2022 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under final consideration by the White House Office of Management and Budget will have significant implications for offshore angling and boating access if the rule becomes final as originally proposed. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), state legislative sportsmen’s caucuses, and our community partners have worked diligently for the last two years pushing alternative technological solutions that provide effective protection for whales while allowing access to our ocean resources. A decision on the fate of the rule and what it contains is expected next month.
Highlights:
- Although the chances of a recreational vessel striking a NARW are extremely small (less than 1-in-1 million), all boats 35 feet and longer are facing a drastic reduction in safe ocean access if a NOAA-proposed rule is implemented this fall.
- CSF and partners have been advocating for better alternatives for right whale conservation using existing and emerging technologies that further reduce the already minute risk of a vessel strike by a recreational vessel.
- Six states recently officially objected to changes to the Vessel Strike Reduction Rule in letters to NOAA, indicating the new proposed rule is not consistent with their Coastal Zone Management Act programs.
After more than two years, a decision on a final rule to expand the scope and size of an existing 10-knot vessel speed limit for ships 65 feet and longer in certain areas to vessels 35 feet and longer for much of the Atlantic coast and for more than half the year is expected in the coming weeks. Since the final rule was dropped in August of 2022, CSF and our community partners have pushed to significantly revise or withdraw the rule in favor of a new rule, developed with all stakeholders at the table and not in a vacuum, that uses latest technologies to more efficiently avoid vessel-whale encounters.
Most recently, objections to the rule came from several Atlantic coast states in response to a letter from NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service seeking a consistency determination on the rule relative to each state’s Coastal Zone Management Act programs. A total of six states, including the four we reported on previously, responded with official objections to the rule based on a number of factors ranging from economic implications to safety at sea. The states that objected and their letters (linked) include Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Massachusetts.
While NOAA has indicated the final rule is likely to look different than what was originally proposed, draconian blanket speed zones are among the least precise and effective approaches to whale conservation. With the current and rapidly emerging technologies available to detect the presence of whales and disseminate that location information to all vessels in a given area, there is an opportunity for NOAA to work closely with the fishing, boating and maritime industries to find more viable and successful solutions in a relatively short amount of time. Fortunately, Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus Members Senators Manchin and Graham and Representatives Carter and Peltola have legislation currently before Congress to do just that if needed. In the meantime, everyone is waiting to see the final rule and whether NOAA has been listening to our calls for a more reasonable and better approach.
