Court OKs Navy Sonar Despite Whale Threat

(AP)  The U.S. Navy can use high-powered sonar during exercises off the Southern California coast despite the technology's threat to whales and other marine mammals, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.

National security interests outweigh the possible harm to marine life, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals determined in overturning a judge's order banning the practice.

"The public does indeed have a very considerable interest in preserving our natural environment and especially relatively scarce whales," Judge Andrew Kleinfeld wrote for the majority. "But it also has an interest in national defense. We are currently engaged in war, in two countries."

Judge Milan Smith Jr. disagreed, saying he would have kept the ban in place in part because the Natural Resources Defense Council is likely to win its lawsuit to stop the use of sonar.

The ruling allows the Navy to use the sonar in 11 planned training exercises.

Cara Horowitz, an attorney for the Santa Monica-based resources defense council, said she was "somewhat disappointed" by the ruling Friday, but remained confident the lawsuit would quickly succeed in shutting down the sonar program off the Southern California coast.

The appeals court said in its Friday ruling that it wanted to resolve the lawsuit quickly and Horowitz was hopeful that the Navy will be able to undertake most of the 11 planned exercises. She said the next planned exercise is in September.

The council's lawsuit alleges that the Navy's sonar causes whales to beach themselves among other environmental harms.

The Navy maintains it already minimizes risks to marine life. It has monitored the ocean off Southern California for the 40 years it has employed sonar without seeing any whale injuries.

A Department of Justice attorney didn't return a telephone call Friday.

[the_quietman]

Solve the complaints permanently, give California back to Mexico

[sblake63]

What I find so irritating and contradictive about all these people crying over these poor animals is that the vast majority of them are pro-choice (pro murder) when it comes to abortion. Save a whale at all costs, but a baby in a waste basket is a private matter to these loonies LOL!

Cruelty to animals is a horrible matter, but one would think people who are so sensitive to the plight of animals would be on the front lines of the pro-life movement. But they are not. They latch on to one thing and ignore the real holocaust. I find most animal rights activists laughable with their save the earth sign in one hand and their keep abortion legal sign on the other - Utterly shameful!

[carolrhill]

The Navy should look at themselves when all these whales and other animals are beaching themselves because they are lost. That is so sad that they do not care about GOD''S animals that is why they have so many horrible things happen in California to their own people.
California has to realize that earthquakes just might be caused by the sonar because it travels through the earth as well.
How could they not care about all the innocent animals? How could they not.

[cbs_oliver]

"The public does indeed have a very considerable interest in preserving our natural environment and especially relatively scarce whales," Judge Andrew Kleinfeld wrote for the majority. "But it also has an interest in national defense. We are currently engaged in war, in two countries.""

It would make more sense if either of those two countries had submarines which might require overpowered sonar technology to detect.

But I guess in the new world order the absence of evidence of the existence of a threat is considered clear evidence that immediate pre-emptive strikes are required. So we should be happy that only whales and such will be killed in droves thise time.

Thanks, Judge Kleinfeld.

[dnamj]

I hate this. This is so sick. Isn''t there any way we can get them to test it out on *** Cheney first? Humans deserve everything coming to them for doing this stuff.

[myidoncbs]

The judge claimed, "The public does indeed have a very considerable interest in preserving our natural environment. But it also has an interest in national defense." What this s-tupid m*ron doesn''t seem to understand is that our "natural environment" is the ONLY environment we get. If it gets f''ed up, then we not only lose the "wars" (they really are just illegal occupations of foreign countries, anyway!), but we have lost our only HOME. They just have absolutely no idea how much damage they might do to the ocean''s ecosystem.

As the native americans once said, "Here come the white devils. You can''t live with them, and you can''t defeat them. So, it must be time to die." I imagine several oceanic species would think the same, if they only knew what''s about to happen. I know many of sane people of this planet are beginning to think the same thing.

[gkc99]

"Judge Andrew Kleinfeld wrote for the majority. "But it also has an interest in national defense. We are currently engaged in war, in two countries."

And the Iraqi navy is a real threat to southern California.

The US Army consciously sought to eliminate the American Buffalo. Now the Navy wants to eliminate the grey whale.

But the judges are not the source of the problem. The source of the problem is a Congress that is too terrified of the military to not give every little thing they want.

The USA kind of reminds of Pakistan in that regard.

[omega39-2009]

Posted by BC_Kelly

BC_Kelly, I am an ex ST also and had many of the same thoughts while reading the article.

[extremophil]

It''s too bad that the Navy Sonar doesn''t drive the Californians into the ocean.

[kaviz]

Bare, LMAO on your comment, not the tragedy of the situation.