ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – An $800,000 grant by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management sought to conduct a study to see how much of an effect underwater sonar mapping off the coast of New Jersey could impact marine life, include whales, dolphins, and others.
The grant, which was published on May 25th, was to conduct a study, “Addressing Key Information Gaps in Acoustic Ecology of North Atlantic Right Whales.”
According to the grant, the government was concerned about the effects of Offshore Wind development on marine life. This is a surprise as local leaders, including Governor Phil Murphy and local leaders such as shore area Senator Vin Gopal, told New Jersey no risks were associated at all. Both politicians told their constituents that the rash of whale deaths in 2022 and 2023 was unrelated to offshore sonar mapping being conducted for the wind farms.
There was no scientific evidence to prove their claims other than citing a study that showed a general uptick in whale deaths for nearly a decade. But the patterns didn’t match previous years. More whales and dolphins died in 2023 than in recent years on record at the Jersey Shore.
Neither side in the heated political had any solid scientific data to prove their claim any more than whale activists did to prove that the rash of deaths at the shore this winter was connected to the offshore sonar mapping.
“In support of the rapid development of offshore wind (OSW) on the Atlantic OCS, the Environmental Studies Program (ESP) has identified a priority need to address knowledge gaps in the acoustic behavior of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales (NARW),” BOEM wrote in the grant solicitation. “This information is vital to the effectiveness of passive acoustic monitoring required for mitigation. This implements BOEM’s Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act mandate to monitor the marine environment adjacent to U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) operations to ensure minimal impacts to the environment and helps ensure responsible development of OCS energy resources. Information will be gathered using digital acoustic recording tags on the relationship between behavioral state and vocalization features and patterns exhibited by tagged animals.”
The truth is Murphy and Gopal didn’t know for sure whether or not the offshore wind sonar mapping project was adversely affecting whales. Republicans also had no proof that it was.
That’s why the federal government commissioned the grant to perform a scientific study.
“Additionally, the context of the animal’s behavior will be sampled (e.g., feeding vs migrating whales, mother-calf pairs) as acoustic behavior can be context-specific. Lastly, the vast amounts of data that have been collected over the decades and continues to be collected every year needs to be considered in NARW conservation and management,” the grant concludes. “The overall goal of this cooperative agreement is to observe and describe acoustic behavior of NARW where significant data gaps in call rates exist and convey information about the context in which the acoustic behaviors are observed.”
During COVID-19, Murphy repeatedly said the science guided him through the pandemic, but when it comes to pushing his radical energy plan for New Jersey, based heavily on off-shore wind energy, the governor dismissed science and refused to err on the side of caution as he had done so often during the pandemic.
Here’s how the science will work, according to the grant.
Information will be gathered using digital acoustic recording tags on the relationship between behavioral state and vocalization features and patterns exhibited by tagged animals. Additionally, the context of the animal’s behavior will be sampled (e.g., feeding vs migrating whales, mother-calf pairs) as acoustic behavior can be context-specific. Lastly, the vast amounts of data that have been collected over the decades and continues to be collected every year needs to be considered in NARW conservation and management.
The overall goal of this cooperative agreement is to observe and describe acoustic behavior of NARW where significant data gaps in call rates exist and convey information about the context in which the acoustic behaviors are observed.
Using digital acoustic recording tags, BOEM requires gathering information on the relationship between behavioral state and vocalization features and patterns exhibited by the animal. It is important to sample the context of their behavior (e.g., feeding vs migrating whales, mother-calf pairs) as it can dramatically affect acoustic behavior. Lastly, the vast amounts of data that have been collected over the decades and continues to be collected every year needs to be brought to bear on issues of NARW conservation and management.
The expertise sought out requires a) synthesis of right whale acoustic data (i.e., tags, PAM, arrays); b) analysis of acoustic occurrence of NARW and oceanographic covariates (e.g., primary production, frontal eddies); c) analysis of range wide acoustic cue rates, including behavioral context where available (e.g., feeding, migrating); d) identification of additional needs vis à vis NARW acoustics; e) field acoustic sampling of NARW, including tagging as well as mobile and moored PAM.
The study would initially be conducted for two years.