US regulators drop proposal that would have made boats slow down to protect whales
Federal regulators have withdrawn a proposed rule that would have significantly expanded the number of ships required to slow down as they travel in waters near the shoreline to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales.
The National Marine Fisheries Service rule would have required any vessel longer than 35 feet to limit its top speed to 10 knots off North Carolina’s coast between Nov. 1 and April 30. Right now, the speed limit applies to any vessel longer than 65 feet and is limited to areas around the Ports of Morehead City and Wilmington.
Additionally, the rule would have mandated slow zones that are now voluntary when whales are spotted outside of areas with seasonal slow zones. Originally proposed in August 2022, the rule is part of the agency’s efforts to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale from extinction. About 90,000 people or organizations submitted comments on the rule.
Due to the volume of comments, the agency said, it was impossible to finalize the rule before the end of the Biden administration. Environmental groups that pushed for the rule and scientists who supported it criticized the decision, while opponents celebrated the defeat of a rules package they said was unnecessarily onerous.
“While we waited over two years for a decision on the vessel strike reduction rule, our East Coast has become a graveyard for North Atlantic right whales. North Atlantic right whales don’t belong on our beaches, and they don’t deserve to die because of political incompetence and a blatant disregard for science-backed solutions,” Gib Brogan, a campaign director for environmental nonprofit Oceana, said in a written statement.
Brogan also called on the incoming Trump administration to find a solution that protects North Atlantic right whales while also allowing protecting the marine economy.
Since 2017, the National Marine Fisheries Service has considered North Atlantic right whales to be undergoing an “unusual mortality event,” primarily due to entanglement with fishing gear or being hit by vessels. In December, a North Atlantic right whale was spotted entangled in fishing gear off of the Outer Banks, and was expected to die. The fisheries service is a division of NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
There are approximately 370 North Atlantic right whales alive today, according to the fisheries service, down from 431 in 2017. Of the 41 whales that are known to have died since 2017, vessel strikes killed 15 and entanglements 10.
North Atlantic right whales are susceptible to vessel strikes because they are dark in color, swim relatively close to the surface and don’t have a dorsal fin. The whales are often found in shallow water near the shore, which they like for calving and mating.
Dozens of North Carolina charter fishermen submitted comments, arguing the rule would harm their businesses and that it is rare for a smaller boat to strike a whale in waters off the state.
Wally Joyner, the president of NC Watermen United, a nonprofit that advocates for fishermen, submitted a comment saying the rule was unnecessary because there was no evidence that boats between 35 and 64 feet had struck North Atlantic right whales off of North Carolina’s coast in recent years. The existing speed zones are already a headache for head-boats and larger trawlers, Joyner wrote, and expanding the regulation would likely lead to less time in fishing waters far out in the ocean.
“Alternatives would include leaving our ports in pre-dawn hours or returning after dusk through what are dangerous inlets. The additional costs to our operators and the very real potential for fewer bookings will bring additional economic hardship not just to our watermen but also to the entire seaside community that depends so heavily on tourist dollars,” Joyner wrote.
A bipartisan group of North Carolina senators and representatives had also called for the fisheries service to withdraw the rule proposal, saying it would cause significant harm to the state’s coastal economy. Those included Sens. Ted Budd and Thom Tillis, Reps. Greg Murphy and David Rouzer, all Republicans, and Rep. Don Davis, a Democrat.
Because charter vessels would take longer to reach prime fishing grounds, the lawmakers wrote, fewer people would book charter trips, leading to a domino effect that would include fewer boat sales, hotel stays and sales at restaurants, tackle shops and marinas.
Budd celebrated NOAA’s withdrawal of the rule, saying in a statement, “North Carolina’s coastline is a treasured part of our state and critical to our region. NOAA’s Right Whale Strike Reduction rule would have been extremely harmful to coastal economies in North Carolina. Its withdrawal is a victory for the Carolina coast and common sense.”
This story was produced with financial support from the Hartfield Foundation and Green South Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. If you would like to help support local journalism, please consider signing up for a digital subscription, which you can do here.