TheMaji on JUDGE PUTS TEMPORARY BAN ON NAVY SONAR USE
BBC – The US Navy has been ordered not to use mid-frequency
sonar
equipment during training exercises off the coast of
California until
the end of 2009.
A federal judge ruled in favor of campaigners who argued
that the
devices harmed marine mammals in the area. They said noise
pollution
from sonar disorientated whales, causing them to become
stranded on
beaches. A navy spokesman said they would appeal because
the injunction
jeopardized the nation’s safety and security. The legal
action was
brought by a coalition of animal welfare groups, led by the
Natural
Resources Defense Council. . . US District Judge
Florence-Marie Cooper
issued the temporary sonar ban following the navy’s request
to dismiss a
lawsuit filed by the NRDC in March, which alleged the
widespread use of
high-intensity sonar during training exercises breached
environmental
legislation.
