At this point, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the lead federal agency for marine mammal science and management, have found “no evidence to support speculation that noise resulting from wind development-related site characterization surveys could potentially cause mortality of whales, and no specific links between recent large whale mortalities and currently ongoing surveys.” NOAA oversees several regulatory processes that help reduce impacts to marine animals and their habitats from human activities, including offshore wind development.
In accordance with NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Marine Mammal Commission, and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection have determined that there is no evidence that these early-stage wind development activities have resulted in serious harm to whales. Past and current research show that vessel strikes and entanglements in fishing gear continue to pose a dangerous, life-threatening risk to whales.
NOAA, BOEM, DOE, and other partners will continue to gather data to help determine the cause of death for these mortality events. We will also continue to explore how sound, vessel, and other human activities in the marine environment impact whales and other marine mammals.
Originally published at https://www.energy.gov/articles/addressing-misinformation-offshore-wind-farms-and-recent-whale-mortalities
