LONG BEACH ISLAND, NJ – Another whale has washed ashore at a New Jersey beach, just miles from where the state has approved offshore wind turbine farms. While many who oppose the farms are blaming whale deaths on sonar mapping and offshore construction, those who support wind energy have blamed a longer-term rise in whale deaths.
According to the Save Right Whales Coalition, 68 dead whales have been reported in the region since December.
The Marine Mammal Stranding Center responded to a call regarding an adult female Pygmy Sperm whale stranded at Seaview Drive in Loveladies on Tuesday.
Local MMSC Stranding Volunteers were dispatched immediately, supported by the MMSC Stranding Staff who arrived from Brigantine with the Cetacean Response Vehicle.
Members of the Long Beach Township Beach Patrol aided in stabilizing the whale by keeping her upright and moist. With collective assistance from lifeguards, public works staff, and the community, the animal, measuring 10-foot 9-inch and weighing over 800lbs, was moved from the beach via a Department of Public Works truck to the MMSC’s veterinary facility.
Following a medical assessment, the whale was found to be unresponsive, lethargic, and experiencing labored breathing. Due to the detrimental effects of stranding on her internal organs, her chances of survival were deemed negligible. The decision was made to euthanize her humanely.
The whale was then taken to the Animal Health Diagnostic Lab (NJAHDL), under the New Jersey Department of Agriculture in Trenton, for a necropsy.
Daniel Shanker, the New Jersey spokesman for Save Right Whales Coalition blames the work being done off the coast after a staggering 68 whales have fallen victim since December of last year.
“Since sonar blasting for offshore wind turbine developments began in December 2022, 68 dead whales have washed ashore. That’s in just 38 weeks, meaning nearly two whales have been confirmed dead every week. At what point are we going to realize it’s not an ‘Unusual Mortality Event’ it’s much worse—it’s an inconvenient and unplanned speciecide happening as a biproduct of rapid and irresponsible offshore wind turbine development,” he said today. “If the government doesn’t put the brakes on these projects, how long will the 350 remaining critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whales (NARW) be able to hold out? Will our children and grandchildren be learning about our current government’s mistakes in in their textbooks in five years or 10?”