November
2003
NEWS
Free
Forum
3
Marine
mammals
and
sonar:
Are
we
killing
them
with
sound?
Fiona
O'Connor
Evidence
continues
to
pile
up
that
the
use
of
Low
Frequency
Active
Sonar
(LFAS)
is
causing
damage
and
death
in
the
world's
oceans.
Several
species
of
beaked
whales,
common
dolphins,
and
porpoises
appear
to
be
at
risk
from
this
latest
man
made
threat.
A
recent
issue
of
the
science
journal
Nature
offers
overwhelming
evidence
that
marine
mammals
are
falling
victim
to
this
new
form
of
noise
pollution
Active
sonar
sends
out
sound
waves
at
short
range
and
involves
listening
to
the
echo
as
it
reflects
off
objects
under
the
ocean.
LFAS
is
the
latest
method
of
active
sonar
used
by
the
US
Navy
in
underwater
surveillance.
This
sonar
uses
low-level
frequencies
that
travel
farther
than
high
level.
The
initial
"ping"
sent
out
is
extremely
loud
at
the
source
and
aids
in
traveling
a
greater
distance.
It
isthe
intensity
of
this
sound
that
is
causing
problems
with
the
denizens
of
the
ocean.
Some
researchers
have
likened
it
to
a
747
roaring
through
a
suburban
neighborhood.
It
wasn't
until
1994
that
testing
of
LFAS
became
known
outside
of
Defense
Department
circles.
In
the
22
instances
of
testing
up
to
that
point,
the
Navy
neglected
to
study
its
effects
on
marine
life,
assuming
it
was
within
acceptable
levels
based
on
the
intensity
of
whale
song.
In
the
spring
of
2000,
four
species
of
whales
and
dolphins
beached
themselves
and
seven
died
after
naval
maneuvers
in
the
Bahamas.
Lastyear
in
the
Canary
Islands,
fourteen
beached
and
eight
died.
This
is
the
fifth
incident
of
mass
strandings
in
the
Islands
from
1985
to
2002.
.
Other
beachings
have
taken
place
in
the
US
Virgin
Islands,
Madeira,
the
UK,
and
the
San
Juan
Islands,
all
following
active
sonar
testing.
Whales
have
remarkably
sensitive
hearing
which
is
used
in
echolocation
(locating
of
objects
by
means
of
reflected
sound).
Echolocation
allows
whales
to
follow
their
migratory
routes,
search
out
food,
care
for
offspring,
and
communicate
with
each
other
over
distance.
Post-mortem
examination
of
stranded
marine
mammals
shows
evidence
of
bleeding
in
the
ears
and
surrounding
tissue.
Interfere
with
or
destroy
this
acute
sense
of
hearing
and
whales
face
death.
But
there
is
more
to
the
problem
than
just
hearing.
Those
animals
which
appear
most
at
risk
are
the
ones
whose
partial
habitat
is
the
deeper
ocean
waters.
Pathological
studies
of
stranded
marine
mammals
indicate
they
appear
to
have
suffered
internal
damage
from
what
in
humans
is
known
as
"the
bends."
Nature
cites
the
findings
of
the
Institute
of
Zoology
in
London
in
its
examination
of
the
dead
whales
from
last
years
Canary
Islands
beachings.
Gas
bubbles
formed
in
the
J3??
J&&
'"'mmmmmmm
m""""
"i.
I
I
III
y
jdslL'a'y
J
Ss
miiiih"
n
'
mmum
mm
"
s
v'l-c
i
A
V
X
"
"
'
7""
3x&Pa
"'""
I
L
!'
"
I,1!
'l
"
''I
'
N't11"
"
Jill
j
i'iU1'
1,
1
1
'TTT'tV1
I
in'
1
'wn
i,,1
1
"Sn.
rHliinh,!
'"i
I,
)ii
1
,.i
in
I
'"'
T
H"1
'
'
I'm
1.1
I
"llilliin,i
'
WMU
"NlUll
1
Illlllii
I
I
.
.I'Wf1""
'
Jjj)iij,"TX
.
'
'
miii
,l"1""1
n
"'
i""""'ii',i1
rj
iMfiLr
""aimar
3
blood
causing
damage
to
the
liver
and
kidneys.
It
is
thought
this
so
called
decompression
sickness
occurs
when
the
animals
shoot
to
the
surface
to
escape
the
sound
of
the
sonar.
Beaked
whales
appear
particularly
susceptible
due
to
the
long
time
intervals
they
spend
at
greater
depths.
Some
researchers
are
also
examining
the
possibility
that
the
sound
waves
themselves
are
physically
affecting
the
tissues
of
marine
mammals.
Dr.
Marsha
Greene
is
president
of
the
Ocean
Mammal
Institute
in
the
US.
When
contacted,
Dr.
Greene
said
that
the
overall
outlook
for
the
beaked
whale
is
not
good
if
use
of
LFAS
is
allowed
to
continue.
These
creatures
have
been
part
of
the
oceans
virtually
unchanged
for
the
last
30
million
years.
Today,
the
Bahamas
beaked
whale
population
has
been
devastated.
Even
knowing
the
links
between
use
of
sonar
and
subsequent
beachings
of
whales,
the
Navy
continues
pushing
for
full
deployment
of
LFAS.
Even
those
animals
that
do
not
live
in
the
deeper
waters
appear
to
suffer
from
discomfort
when
exposed
to
sonar
use.
If
they
are
not
using
their
own
sonar
then
they
are
not
eating.
Sound
has
long
been
shown
to
cause
both
gray
and
bowhead
whales
to
leave
their
migratory
path
so
it
does
not
seem
surprising
that
gray
whales
veer
off
their
migratory
route
when
they
encounter
LFAS
transmissions.
In
May
2003,
the
USS
Shoup
used
its
sonar
while
passing
through
the
San
Juan
Islands
on
its
way
to
Canada.
Researchers
in
the
area
reported
a
pod
of
Orcas
splitting
in
pits
iBeg(l
ite(mvideS;at
backgmttvabufMski.'-;;
;
'
s'tjtm
LMtz
two
and
heading
off
in
different
directions.
A
Minke
whale
and
up
to
one
hundred
porpoises
were
also
reported
to
flee
the
area
at
high
speeds.
Following
this
event
over
a
dozen
Harbor
porpoises
were
found
dead.
Even
knowing
the
links
between
use
of
sonar
and
subsequent
beachings
of
whales,
the
Navy
continues
pushing
for
full
deployment
of
LFAS.
In
July
2002,
a
permit
was
issued
by
the
Bush
admin
r
"
istration.
This
permit
gave
the
US
Navy
permission
to
use
its
LFAS
in
up
to
75
of
the
world's
oceans.
This
was
in
spite
of
the
evidence
and
against
concerns
of
scientists.
An
injunction
prohibiting
wide
spread
use
of
the
system
was
filed
in
October
2002
on
the
basis
that
it
most
likely
violated
several
federal
laws
including
the
Marine
Mammal
Protection
Act,
The
Endangered
Species
Act,
and
the
National
Environmental
Policy
Act.
In
August
of
this
year
use
LFAS
was
barred
from
full
deployment
by
the
US
navy.
In
addition,
the
judge
ruled
that
the
Navy
must
take
steps
to
mitigate
the
harmful
effects
of
LFAS
by
workingjvith
conservation
groups
to
limit
its
use.
Recently,
such
an
agreement
was
reached
between
the
Navy
and
the
opposing
parties
of
the
original
lawsuit.
The
agreement
sets
out
terms
for
the
use
of
LFAS
for
both
testing
and
training
during
peacetime.
It
does
not
prohibit
the
use
of
the
system
during
times
of
war
or
heightened
tension
though.
This
last
has
caused
many
to
question
what
the
Navy
terms
heightened
tension.
So
even
though
this
agreement
signals
a
turn
in
the
right
direction,
the
issue
is
far
from
resolved.
This
so
called
decompression
sickness
occurs
when
the
animals
shoot
to
the
surface
to
escape
the
sound
of
the
sonar.
It
is
a
sad
view
of
humankind
when
progress
and
technology
outweigh
the
benefits
of
preserving
the
natural
wonders
of
the
planet.
In
the
celluloid
world
of
Star
Trek,
the
stalwart
crew
was
able
to
travel
back
in
time
to
repopulate
the
humpback
whale
species,
undoing
the
mistakes
of
the
past.
We
live
in
the
real
world
though,
and
if
through
our
carelessness
we
destroy
these
beautiful
marine
creatures,
the
oceans
will
have
an
eerie
silence
that
can
never
be
undone.