Taking or Importing of Marine Mammals: U.S. Navy Operations of Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Low Frequency Active Sonar in the Western and Central North Pacific Ocean and Eastern Indian Ocean

The U.S. Navy wants to operate underwater sonar equipment in parts of the Pacific and Indian Oceans for the next few years, and this proposal allows them to do so even though the sonar can harm or kill whales and other marine mammals. The Navy and marine scientists say the sonar is necessary for national defense and detecting submarines, but animals in these ocean areas—including endangered whales—may experience injury, hearing loss, or death from the loud underwater sounds. This approval matters because it balances military needs against protection of ocean wildlife, and it sets rules for how often and where the Navy can use this sonar to try to minimize the damage to marine life.

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