Legal Insurrection readers will recall that I have been covering reports of numerous dead whales washing ashore on the beaches of New York and New Jersey.
Many observers, including environmental activists, are concerned that the offshore wind projects are leading to these troubling deaths.
Now Republican members in the House of Representatives from the Northeast call for a halt to offshore wind projects until their full environmental and economic impacts are assessed.
The push led by Rep. Jeff Van Drew, New Jersey Republican, coincides with concerns about a dozen humpback whales and right whales that have washed ashore this year along the East Coast.“While [the Biden] administration continues to ignore the adverse consequences that could result from offshore wind development, my colleagues and I will not,” Mr. Van Drew told Fox News Digital. “It is imperative that the array of unanswered concerns are addressed, from maritime travel and safety to the environment and national security.”His resolution is co-sponsored by fellow Republican Reps. Chris Smith of New Jersey, Andy Harris of Maryland, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Anthony D’Esposito of New York.Beyond environmental concerns, they are worried about the effect on fishing and shipping industries. The resolution says Congress senses that offshore wind development should be halted pending an investigation.
The timing of this development coincides with the news that a pod of eight dolphins died after they became stranded on a Jersey Shore beach this week.
Two of the marine mammals died when officials arrived at the Sea Isle City beach, according to New Jersey’s Marine Mammal Stranding Center.The six others, whose conditions were “rapidly deteriorating,” were assisted by a veterinarian before a decision was made to euthanize them “to prevent further suffering, as returning them to the ocean would have only prolonged their inevitable death,” the organization said.The bodies of the eight dolphins were transported to a lab for necropsies.“We share in the public’s sorrow for these beautiful animals, and hope that the necropsies will help us understand the reason for their stranding,” MMSC said.
Since 2017, at least 335 humpbacks, right whales, and minkes, a small whale species, died after washing onto the East Coast. “Experts” deny that offshore wind projects are a problem.
The Marina Mammal Commission insisted that the high levels of beachings are ‘not new, nor are they unique to the US Atlantic coast’.The most common reason attributed to the deaths has been either the animals being hit by ships or caught in fishing nets.Post-mortems conducted on many of the humpback whales found since 2016 found that approximately 40 percent had evidence of ‘human interaction’, meaning ship strikes or entanglements, according to the NOAA.Another reason that could explain the mass deaths is the surge in online shopping since the pandemic, which has fueled a record-setting number of cargo shipments to the East Coast.The spike has led to an increase in titanic vessels moving through the region, and their updated routes may have begun crossing paths with more whales than ever before.
If the offshore farms are not a problem for marine mammals, then a detailed environmental impact assessment should confirm that determination…as long as it is conducted based on real science and not politically-driven, narrative science.
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