Dear NRDC Activist,

Critically endangered North Atlantic right whales are on the brink of extinction. Only about 350 remain in their home along the Atlantic coast, and the population is declining rapidly due to entanglements in fishing gear and vessel strikes.

While we develop offshore wind – critical for a healthier, fossil fuel-free future that avoids the worst impacts of the climate crisis – we must prevent further jeopardizing highly vulnerable North Atlantic right whales with increased boat traffic, noisy construction activities, and habitat change.

A new strategy released by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and NOAA Fisheries goes a long way toward making sure that we protect North Atlantic right whales while responsibly developing offshore wind. Now we need the agencies to fully fund the commitments that they have laid out and begin implementing them.

Urge BOEM and NOAA to take the next step to protect whales while advancing responsible offshore wind development.

With North Atlantic right whales on the edge of extinction, the crisis these whales face is not a problem caused by the offshore wind industry, but it is one the industry must face.

The strategy makes recommendations to avoid and minimize impacts to North Atlantic right whales from offshore wind activities, including:

• Reducing noise levels during construction to the maximum extent practicable
• Ensuring noise reduction targets during construction are met for each turbine that’s driven into the seafloor
• Conducting underwater acoustic monitoring to listen for whales a full 24 hours in advance of loud foundation installation activities
• Ensuring a sufficient number of trained observers are deployed to monitor for the presence of whales during construction and more

But without funding, the final strategy cannot be fully implemented. Securing funding is fundamental to the strategy’s success – and allows for true interagency implementation.

North Atlantic right whales are already facing serious threats from fishing gear entanglement and vessel strikes, as well as being impacted by underwater noise pollution — all while struggling to adapt to climate change. We must protect them from any further harm as we make the essential transition to a 100% clean energy future.

Funding this whale survival strategy is fundamental to its success. Send a message to the Biden administration supporting this final strategy and urge them to fund and implement it.

Thank you for taking action. Together, we can help protect North Atlantic right whales and efficiently develop offshore wind energy.

Sincerely,

Dr. Francine Kershaw
Senior Scientist, Nature, NRDC