ASSATEAGUE – Two more whale strandings reported in recent weeks, including one in New Jersey and one near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, had federal lawmakers again calling for a moratorium on offshore wind energy development projects.
Over the span of a couple of weeks last month, deceased whales of various sizes and species stranded on the beaches across the mid-Atlantic, largely in New Jersey and New York, but also on Assateague. There, a nearly 34-foot humpback washed up on the beach in the over-sand vehicle (OSV) area.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) conducted a preliminary necropsy of the deceased whale in conjunction with the National Aquarium, and the initial results revealed a hemorrhage consistent with a boat strike. However, the preliminary results did not conclude if the whale’s injury was caused before or after death.
The nexus between renewable, sustainable offshore wind energy and the sudden rash of whale deaths in the mid-Atlantic area where the spike has largely occurred cannot be understated and creates a conundrum. Of course, there could be no correlation between the whale deaths and the offshore activity, or the spike in deaths could just be a natural phenomenon related to normal migration patterns.
Nonetheless, the spike in whale deaths continues to prompt finger-pointing between environmental advocacy groups, federal and local government officials, and other stakeholders.
Dead fish STINK! The bigger the fish, the bigger the stink. Just be glad you don’t live there!