At the turn of the century, roughly 90 percent of marine life disappeared in the NY-NJ Bight, including menhaden. This prompted the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission in 2012 to limit menhaden catches, an important species in the bight’s food chain.
Replenished, the menhaden are now swimming further north than usual, attracted by the warming ocean (guess why!). While the hungry humpback, right and minke whales relish this travelling feast, their northward travels lure them into a growing danger -- the increased coastal shipping in the NY-NJ Bight’s three shipping lanes. This lengthened migration also explains why more beached whales are being found, dying of natural mortalities.
In 1972, the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act was passed to protect mammals, especially endangered and protected species.
NOAA recently proposed new rules reducing speeds in shipping zones, increasing the number of vessels subject to these requirements, and reducing fishnet entanglements, also a major cause of whale deaths.
Meanwhile, the research is clear: scientists at Rutgers University, NOAA, the U.S. Bureau of Energy Management, N.J.’s DEP, the U.S. EPA, the U.S. Dept. of Energy, the University of Rhode Island, and the Marine Mammal Commission are among the many research organizations that confirm the primary causes of identifiable whale deaths are ship collisions and commercial bottom-scouring fish nets.
Each of these organizations have explored and commented on this controversial topic, Sierra Club Magazine, Associated Press, CBS News, EnergyNews, Yale (Univ.) Climate News, National Public Radio, nj.com, and Columbia University's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law and by the New Republic here.
The Sierra Club firmly states that blaming whale deaths on wind turbines are “unfounded and premature,” and that “It’s important to discover why we’re seeing increased whale mortalities in New Jersey and surrounding areas.”
The Sierra Club is clear: “We support responsible offshore wind development to help New Jersey achieve 100% clean energy.”
Other environmental groups supporting windfarms include Anglers for Offshore Wind, Association of N.J Environmental Commissions, Clean Water Action, Environment N.J., GreenFaith Alliance, Natural Resources Defense Council, N.J. Audubon, N.J. Environmental Lobby, N.J. League of Conservation Voters, N.Y. /N.J. Baykeeper, Pinelands Preservation Alliance, Surfrider Foundation, and National Wildlife Federation.
While fixed-based off-shore turbines are in our immediate future, the windfarm industry eventually plans to use floating or anchored wind turbines in deeper off-shore waters, where winds are stronger and more prevalent.
Whether fixed or floating, the Sierra Club supports wind farms as a key weapon in New Jersey’s fight against global warming.
George Moffatt 6/20/24