NEPTUNE, NJ – What’s killing off an unusually high amount of whales and dolphins at the Jersey Shore? While many shore area public officials are blaming sonar-based surveys of the ocean floor ahead of Governor Phil Murphy’s massive offshore wind energy farm, others are saying it’s part of a yearslong trend.
Those on either side of the heated, now politically charged debate are unwilling to meet in the middle.
On one side, the pro-green energy types such as Governor Phil Murphy insist there’s is ‘no there, there’ when it comes to dead whales and dolphins washing ashore at abnormally high rates this winter.
On the other side, those who blame the high rate of deaths on the work being done offshore are pushing to block the offshore work until a study is conducted. Both sides have presented reliable data to suggest their stance is correct.
Neither side has conducted studies or thoroughly investigated the most recent mass mammal stranding event.
Now, the small shore town of Neptune is calling on all involved parties to support an unbiased investigation to see what is going on at the Jersey Shore.
The residents of the Jersey Shore deserve to know.
“Last night, the Borough of #NeptuneCity Council passed my resolution calling for an unbiased investigation into #NewJersey Offshore Wind Projects & the disastrous whale & dolphin deaths,” Neptune Councilman Brian Thomas posted on his Twitter page. “I hope other municipalities do the same & call on Trenton to do an immediate stop – now!”
The resolution passed by the town council documented the 30-plus whale and dolphin deaths reported since December.
While New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy continues to deflect on the matter, claiming the mass death event is part of a long-term trend, the numbers don’t add up.
Dolphins and whales are washing up at the Jersey Shore at an abnormally high rate this winter. So far, more dolphins and whales have washed ashore in the first three months of 2023 than in the past five full years.
According to the NOAA, New Jersey had seen more humpback whale strandings in 2023 than it has since the agency began tracking the uptick when it was first noticed in 2016.
This year, 78 humpback whales have been stranded at the Jersey Shore. In 2022, there were 4. In 2021, there were none. Before this year, the most humpback whale strandings in New Jersey in a single year was in 2019, when there were five the entire year.
Making matters worse for Phil Murphy and wind energy, New Jersey is not the only state seeing an increase this year.
Virginia has also had its share of strandings in 2023. Coincidentally, an offshore wind energy project is underway there too.
Five humpback whales have been stranded in Virginia this year after just one reported event in 2022 and 2021.
The rest of the east coast has not experienced any uptick in humpback whale deaths in 2023, making the unusual mortality event specific to the two states building offshore wind energy farms.