There will be many other scientists involved, with satellite and radio tagging, monitoring from many platforms, and data work. The Navy has been increasingly open about the system. CSI has been to many meetings and we are convinced that they are strongly committed to preventing the LFA from doing harm to marine mammals and turtles in tests and training operations. The Navy recognized the need to study the impacts so as to prevent them, and appear to be giving unprecedented access and funding to achieve that goal. LFS mitigation assumes less of a source level, includes ramp-up, or shutdown if an animal is detected 100 m from source or certain other responses are observed.
Migration is a critical time for gray whales.
With humpbacks some of the questions revolve around the simple truth that the project seeks to disrupt the breeding behavior of an endangered species. We have been as involved as any environmental organization could be, and we are going to continue to assess the project objectively, and report on it without hype. If this project was motivated merely by scientific questions we would oppose it flatly. If we can help make its motivation ensure adequate data to enable the management of manmade sounds in the ocean we may support it. The Draft Scientific Research Permit raised many questions, and we have hopes that they will be answered satisfactorily.