Just some numbers on sonic cannon mapping I thought were interesting after the Obama administration announced approval for use of sonic cannons off of the Eastern US coast for geological survey purposes; much to the dismay of environmentalists and people who owe their livelihoods to fisheries and tourism. Energy companies however, need the data as they prepare to apply for drilling leases in 2018, when current congressional limits expire.
The cannons create noise pollution in waters shared by whales, dolphins and turtles, sending sound waves many times louder than a jet engine reverberating through the deep every ten seconds for weeks or monthly at a time.
They are already used in the western Gulf of Mexico, off Alaska and in other offshore oil operations around the world. They are towed behind boats, sending down pulses of sound that reverberate beneath the sea floor and rebound to the surface. Hydrophones capture the results, which computers translate into high resolution, three-dimensional images.
So just "what" are whales and dolphins in for? This makes it simple:
60 decibels. This is how loud humans normally talk.
140 decibels. Even momentary exposure to sound at this level can cause permanent hearing damage in humans.
180 decibels. The maximum underwater noise from sonic cannons allowed within 500 meters, mitigating physical damage to marine mammals.
2,500 miles. How far away lower levels of noise pollution from the cannons have been recorded by hydrophones.
138,000. The minimum number of whales, turtles and other sea creatures that could be harmed, according to government estimates.
280,000. The number of jobs the American Petroleum Institute says could be created by offshore drilling in the Atlantic.
4.72 billion. The number of barrels of "technically recoverable oil" beneath federal waters from Florida to Maine, according to government estimates.
$23.5 billion. The annual economic contribution that Atlantic oil drilling could bring to the U.S. economy, according to the oil industry.
It's difficult to imagine that this will go well for the whales and dolphins in the Atlantic. As if Deepwater Horizon wasn't devastating enough to the Gulf; now this. You've gotta love Capitalism.
Hat tip to MSN and StarTribune
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