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NOAA on the verge of diminishing whale protections | GUEST COMMENTARY.A proposed shift in U.S.government policy regarding ship speed limits will weaken a proven conservation program for whales occurring in our waters.I helped develop those programs while at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service.Depleted nearly to extinction by whaling by the early-1900s, the North Atlantic right whale has the unfortunate attribute of inhabiting coastal waters along eastern Canada and the United States — host to large-scale fisheries and some of the busiest ports in North America.Making their way between New England’s rich feeding areas and nursery grounds off Georgia and Florida twice each year, the slow-moving whales must run a gauntlet of fishing gear and ships entering East Coast ports.Even though severely reduced to an estimated fewer than 100 individuals, the right whale exhibited modest growth in the last few decades.Mortalities from human activities continue to inhibit its recovery.Entanglement in fishing gear can cause gruesome injuries and a slow death; being struck by motoring ships results in propeller wounds and broken bones.A rash of deaths in 2017-2018 represented a significant conservation setback.There are too few right whales to ensure continued recovery and to safeguard against unexpected declines due to, say, increases in deaths from our maritime activities or the effects of warming ocean waters.In the late 1990s, I led a team of biologists, economists and agency lawyers at NMFS, who, along with retired and active U.S.Coast Guard personnel, developed a comprehensive plan to reduce the number of whale strikes.We realigned shipping practices on behalf of right whales by modifying or creating new shipping routes for numerous port entrances and distributed extensive outreach and education materials for mariners.Around the same time, information was emerging, including from our own work, that vessel speed was a factor in whale strikes — higher speeds increased the risk of death to a struck whale.Embracing this, we created 10 knot speed restriction zones in 20-mile semicircles around key U.S.ports, including at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, in times of the year when ships were most likely to encounter whales.Subsequent analysis showed that speed limits conveyed substantial reductions (up to 80-90%) of fatal strikes.I left NMFS in 2016 and now view its actions from afar.For reasons that are not entirely clear — perhaps resulting from pressure from Congress or this administration’s political appointees — NMFS has now signaled a shift toward a reliance on “technological solutions” rather than retaining the effective vessel speed program.This is nothing new; technological fixes have been proposed in the past.To examine this, we convened a workshop of experts and shipping industry reps who concluded that while some technologies had promise, none could replace tangible modifications to ship operation practices.Multiple studies have confirmed the same holds true today.A reliance on technological fixes does not anticipate real-world downsides.Most approaches being considered (satellite imagery, enhanced at-sea optics, for example) are limited to daylight and favorable weather and sea conditions, leaving submerged whales and those moving at night uncounted.Moreover, whale detection is only part of the equation — a boat operator needs clear and specific guidance about what they are to do if a whale is in their path, such as reducing speed or avoiding an area.Absent clear operational requirements to avoid a collision, technological approaches have little value.In addition, requiring mariners to react to whale presence on short notice complicates port arrivals and scheduling, increasing costs for vessel owners, ports and cargo handlers.The need to avoid the uncertainties and costs associated with a new system leads us directly back to speed limits in finite areas and times that allow mariners and ports to anticipate minor delays.As it turns out, even small biological populations can increase their numbers, as programmed into them by tens of millions of years of evolution.And as it turns out, small populations can rebound if only we can stop killing them.The government is obligated to seek public input in making policy changes such as this.Those interested in the future of this species and the ecosystems on which it depends are urged to submit comments.Information is at NOAA’s website on vessel strikes; the submission deadline is June 2.Gregory Silber was the coordinator for Recovery Activities for Endangered Large Whale Species at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, from 1995 to 2016.He lives in Maryland.