Opinion ID: 3051262
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Mitigation Measures Employed by the Navy

Text: and Those Imposed by the District Court While the Navy adopted a number of mitigation measures intended to reduce the harm caused by the use of MFA sonar in the SOCAL exercises, the district court concluded that those measures were inadequate both to cure the Navy’s likely NEPA violation and to avoid the possibility of irreparable harm to NRDC. Accordingly, following our November 13, 2007 remand order, the district court established additional, narrowly-tailored mitigation measures which the Navy would have to employ during the remaining SOCAL exercises. To place these mitigation measures in context, we explain what mitigation measures the Navy has previously employed and is currently employing in the SOCAL exercises. In June 2006, shortly before the Navy was to conduct that year’s “Rim of the Pacific” exercise off the coast of Hawaii (the “2006 RIMPAC exercise”), plaintiffs sued the Navy and the same co-defendants here,25 seeking to enjoin the Navy from using MFA sonar in that exercise. Following the district court’s grant of NRDC’s motion for a temporary restraining 25 Only the League for Coastal Protection was not a plaintiff in the 2006 action. 2106 NRDC v. WINTER order, the parties entered into a settlement agreement that allowed the Navy to use MFA sonar in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise but only if it employed certain mitigation measures in addition to those already imposed by the NMFS in its June 27, 2006 Incidental Harassment Authorization and by the Department of Defense in its June 30, 2006 National Defense Exemption (“NDE I”).26 The mitigation measures the Navy adopted for the 2006 RIMPAC exercise include operating MFA sonar at the lowest practicable level not to exceed 235 dB except for short periods to meet tactical training objectives, and using at least one lookout dedicated to the detection of marine mammals, as well as three non-dedicated lookouts, on each ship operating MFA sonar and requiring them to report sightings of marine mammals. The following mitigation measures employed during the 2006 RIMPAC exercise are of particular importance here: • The designation of “safety zones” in which: - the MFA sonar level is reduced by 6 dB if a marine mammal is detected within 1,000 meters of the sonar dome (located in the bow of the vessel);27 26 The NMFS’s Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA), issued pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 1371(a)(5), authorized the incidental “taking” of a small number of marine mammals under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), 16 U.S.C. § 1361 et seq. The Deputy Secretary of Defense incorporated the mitigation measures imposed by the NMFS into NDE I issued pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 1371(f), which exempted from the MMPA for a period of six months all military readiness activities employing MFA sonar, including the 2006 RIMPAC exercise. The NDE I imposed different mitigation measures for non-RIMPAC exercises during the six month period, including the prohibition on use of MFA sonar within 12 nautical miles of a coast. 27 Because the decibel is a logarithmic unit of acoustic power (using the base-10 logarithm), a reduction in sonar level of 6 dB corresponds to a reduction in sound intensity of approximately 75%, and a reduction in sonar level of 10 dB corresponds to a reduction in sound intensity of 90%. See Bird decl. ¶ 29. NRDC v. WINTER 2107 - the MFA sonar level is reduced by 10 dB if a marine mammal is detected within 500 meters of the sonar dome; and - the use of MFA sonar is stopped if a marine mammal is detected within 200 meters of the sonar dome.28 • In conditions of strong surface ducting—where sonar sound carries over a greater distance than would otherwise be the case—the safety zones will be expanded such that the MFA sonar level is reduced by 6 dB if a marine mammal is detected within 2,000 meters of the sonar dome and by 10 dB if one is detected within 1,000 meters of the dome, and that the use of MFA sonar is stopped if a marine mammal is detected within 500 meters of the sonar dome. • In conditions of low visibility—i.e., whenever a safety zone is not fully visible—additional detection measures will be used, such as infrared or enhanced passive acoustic detection. If detection of marine mammals is not possible out to the lim- its of the safety zone, the sonar level will be reduced as if a marine mammal is present imme- diately beyond the extent of detection. • With the exception of three specific “choke point” exercises, MFA sonar will not be operated in constricted channels or canyon-like areas or within 25 kilometers of the 200 meter isobath.29 28 As one meter equals 1.094 yards, the sizes of the three safety zones correspond to approximately 1,100 yards, 550 yards, and 220 yards, respectively. 29 An isobath is a line (either imaginary or on a map) joining places where water has equal depth. 2108 NRDC v. WINTER • During the three choke point exercises, additional mitigation measures will be employed, including two hours of pre-exercise monitoring for marine mammals. Following the 2006 RIMPAC exercise, the Navy issued an “after action report” in which it reported that it had used MFA sonar for a total of 472 hours during the 2006 RIMPAC exercise and that the mitigation measures resulted in a loss of 8 hours of MFA sonar use.30 Dec. 7, 2006 Rim of the Pacific After Action Report at 9. Although no unusual behavior of marine mammals had been observed, the Navy reported that of the estimated 256 marine mammals potentially affected by the 472 hours of MFA sonar use, approximately 100 of them had been precluded from exposure to MFA sonar as a result of the mitigation measures. In October 2006, in anticipation of the SOCAL exercises, the Navy submitted a consistency determination to the CCC, seeking the CCC’s concurrence in the Navy’s determination that the SOCAL exercises were consistent to the maximum extent possible with the enforceable policies of the CCMP, which, for purposes of the CZMA, are contained in the California Coastal Act. See Cal. Pub. Res. Code § 30008.31 The CCC disagreed with the Navy that the use of MFA sonar in the SOCAL exercises would not affect California’s coastal resources. Accordingly, the CCC conditioned its concurrence in the Navy’s consistency determination on the Navy adopting 30 The Navy asserted in its “after action report” that 8 hours of lost MFA sonar use translated into a somewhat greater amount of lost exercise time because once the sonar is turned off, simply turning it back on does not usually allow the Navy Commander to continue the exercise where it left off. 31 The CZMA requires that a federal agency planning to conduct activities that may have reasonably foreseeable effects on California’s coastal resources must apply to the CCC for a determination that those activities are consistent to the maximum extent practicable with the enforceable policies of the CCMP. See 16 U.S.C. § 1456(c)(1)(C); 15 C.F.R. § 930.36. NRDC v. WINTER 2109 fourteen mitigation measures, several of which the Navy had already employed in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise. The Navy agreed to adopt only four of the CCC’s measures—all but one of which do not actually prevent the use of MFA sonar from harming marine mammals32 —and it refused to adopt the remaining ten measures: • The measures used in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise for reducing sonar levels during conditions of low visibility; • The measures used in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise in “choke points;” • Increasing the outer safety zone to 2 kilometers even in conditions not involving strong surface ducting;33 • Reducing sonar level by 6 dB during strong sur- face ducting conditions; 32 Following the CCC’s conditional concurrence, the Navy agreed to adopt two of the CCC’s mitigation measures: retrieving inert dropped mine shapes from the water and submitting to the CCC all monitoring results provided to the NMFS. The mitigation measures set forth in the EA, which have been standard operating procedure since 2004, appear to include two other measures proposed by the CCC: requiring passive sonar operators to monitor for marine mammals and report the detection of any such mammals; and providing a report to the NMFS following a major exercise that includes the results of marine mammal monitoring (a measure already employed in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise). The Navy concedes that the measure concerning dropped mine shapes “has nothing to do with MFA sonar usage,” Dec. 20, 2007 Declaration of Rear Admiral John M. Bird ¶ 13, and the two reporting requirements do not mitigate actual harm to marine mammals but instead assist in the determination of the impacts of the SOCAL exercises. See Feb. 4, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 6 n.7. Only the use of passive sonar to monitor for marine mammals mitigates the harm caused by the use of MFA sonar. 33 As stated above, the Navy had agreed to employ in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise a 2,000 meter safety zone in strong surface ducting conditions. 2110 NRDC v. WINTER • Using two marine mammal observers who have received NOAA-approved training for surveil- lance during use of MFA sonar; • Requiring aerial monitoring off San Clemente Island throughout exercises involving MFA sonar; • Monitoring for marine mammals for 30 minutes prior to commencing use of MFA sonar; • Avoiding training in areas with known high con- centrations of marine mammals; and • Locating and scheduling training outside the migration season for the grey whale.34 In January 2007, the Deputy Secretary of Defense issued, pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 1371(f), a second National Defense Exemption (“NDE II”), which exempted from the requirements of the MMPA all the Navy’s military readiness activities employing MFA sonar for the duration of the SOCAL exercises. The Deputy Secretary of Defense conditioned the exemption on the Navy adopting a number of mitigation measures, which already had been standard operating procedure in the Navy’s ASW exercises since 2004. As the EA makes clear, it is those mitigation measures, and only those measures, which the Navy adopted for the SOCAL exercises. While the Navy describes the adopted mitigation measures as consisting of 29 separate measures, the district court found that, in effect, they consist of only four basic measures: “(1) personnel training (providing approved Marine Species Awareness Training materials for lookouts and commanding 34 The nine bullet points reflect the substance of the ten mitigation measures the Navy refused to adopt; two of the conditions have been consolidated in the fifth bullet point. NRDC v. WINTER 2111 officers), (2) on-deck lookouts, armed with binoculars or night vision goggles, to watch for marine mammals, (3) operating procedures to ensure that any sightings of marine mammals are communicated up the chain of command, so that MFA sonar is powered down [(i.e., sonar power is reduced)] when a marine mammal approaches within 1,000 yards, 500 yards, and ‘secured’ (shut-down) at 200 yards,35 and (4) coordination and reporting procedures.” Feb. 4, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 6 n.7. Our review of the EA reveals at most two additional basic measures: that passive sonar will be used to detect marine mammals and that Navy aircraft participating in exercises will conduct surveillance when doing so does not interfere with safety or the “accomplishment of primary operational duties.”36 Notably, the measures adopted by the Navy 35 We note that the Navy has recently agreed to slightly enlarge its safety zones by applying safety zones of 1,000, 500 and 200 meters instead of 1,000, 500 and 200 yards. Bird decl. ¶ 58. As a result, those safety zones are now of equal size as those employed in the 2006 RIMPAC exercise. However, the Navy has not agreed to employ expanded safety zones in strong surface ducting conditions. 36 The Navy also adopted a mitigation measure requiring “increased vigilance” during major ASW exercises using MFA sonar when “critical conditions” are present: a rapid change in bathymetry in areas of a certain depth; where three or more vessels are operating MFA sonar in the same area for six hours or more; where MFA sonar may “cut off” the exit route for marine mammals from a bay or channel; and the historical presence of a significant surface duct. However, in its June 2007 “after action report” the Navy explained that it had assessed the conditions of the Southern California Operating Area and concluded that “the requirements stated in [the aforementioned mitigation measure] do not apply to the physical conditions found in Southern California.” Accordingly, this mitigation measure is not being employed in the SOCAL exercises and therefore does not, in fact, mitigate the impact of MFA sonar on marine mammals during those exercises. Similarly, the Navy adopted as a mitigation measure the requirement that MFA sonar be operated “at the lowest practical level, not to exceed 235 dB, except as required to meet tactical training objectives.” However, that requirement, also adopted for the 2006 RIMPAC exercise, has no apparent mitigating effect because (1) it is not clear whether the Navy ever 2112 NRDC v. WINTER do not include the ten aforementioned mitigation measures recommended by the CCC, such as increasing the outer safety zone to 2 kilometers, monitoring for marine mammals at least 30 minutes before commencing MFA sonar use, and conducting the SOCAL exercises outside the grey whale’s migratory season and outside areas with high concentrations of marine mammals. Moreover, the adopted measures do not include the 2006 RIMPAC measures requiring that MFA sonar not be used in constricted channels and canyon-like areas or within 25 kilometers of the 200 meter isobath. Nor do they include the requirement, imposed by NDE I for non-RIMPAC exercises in 2006, that MFA sonar not be used within 12 nautical miles from the coastline. Following our November 13, 2007 remand order, the district court set out to determine what narrowly-tailored mitigation measures should be imposed for the remaining SOCAL exercises. In the words of the district court, NRDC proposed “sweeping geographic exclusions” to the Navy’s use of MFA sonar, including a 25 nautical mile coastal exclusion, locating exercises to the maximum extent possible in waters deeper than 1,500 meters, and an exclusion in the Catalina Basin, the Westfall seamount, and the Cortez and Tanner Banks. Jan. 3, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 13 n.6. The Navy also proposed several mitigation measures. See id. After reviewing the parties’ briefs and taking a Navyguided tour of the USS Milius, the district court imposed six mitigation measures in addition to those already required by assumed higher sonar levels when using its harassment model to predict harm to marine mammals, (2) the Navy’s interim report on the Bahamas stranding indicates that sonar levels during the Bahamas exercise did not exceed 235 dB even without the mitigation measure, and (3) the exception that the Navy may exceed the 235 dB limit “as required to meet tactical training objectives” swallows the rule, as tactical training objectives are the only reason for using MFA sonar to begin with, thus allowing the Navy to exceed the 235 dB limit whenever it in fact uses MFA sonar. NRDC v. WINTER 2113 NDE II: (1) the Navy shall suspend use of MFA sonar when a marine mammal is detected within 2,200 yards from the sonar source, except where the marine mammal is a dolphin or a porpoise and it appears that the mammal is intentionally following the sonar-emitting naval vessel in order to play in or ride the vessel’s bow wave; (2) the Navy shall reduce the MFA sonar level by 6 dB when significant surface ducting conditions are detected;37 (3) the Navy shall not use MFA sonar within 12 nautical miles from the California coastline; (4) the Navy shall monitor, including by aircraft, for the presence of marine mammals for 60 minutes before employing MFA sonar, shall utilize two dedicated, NOAA- and NMFStrained lookouts at all times when MFA sonar is being used, shall employ passive acoustic monitoring to supplement visual detection of the presence of marine mammals, and shall use aircraft participating in the training exercises to monitor for marine mammals for the duration of the exercises when MFA sonar is being used; (5) Navy helicopters shall monitor for marine mammals for 10 minutes before employing active dipping sonar; and (6) the Navy shall refrain from using MFA sonar in the Catalina Basin between the Santa Catalina and San Clemente Islands because ingress and egress to the basin are restricted and the basin has a high density of marine mammals. See Jan. 10, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 1-5. The district court rejected many of the geographic exclusions proposed by NRDC in favor of a 2,200-yard safety zone, accepted the Navy’s representations that the bathymetry off the shores of southern California presents unique training opportunities, see Feb. 4, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 7, and declined to limit the use of sonar at night or in conditions of low visibility despite the Navy’s voluntarily adoption of such limitations for the 2006 RIMPAC exercise, see Jan. 3, 2008 Dist. Ct. Order at 7-8. 37 The parties clarified at oral argument on February 27, 2008, that “significant” is the same as “strong,” the term used to modify surface ducting conditions in the mitigation measures for the 2006 RIMPAC exercise. 2114 NRDC v. WINTER The Navy takes issue only with the first two of the mitigation measures imposed by the district court, namely the 2,200 yard “shutdown zone” and the “power-down” requirement during significant surface ducting conditions. Specifically, the Navy argues that those two mitigation measures tip the balance of hardships in its favor and are contrary to the public interest. In support of its argument the Navy has submitted declarations by high-ranking officers attesting to the adverse consequences that those measures will have on the Navy’s military readiness. For example, Vice Admiral Locklear, Commander of the U.S. Third Fleet, opines that “imposing a 2200-yard shutdown zone will have crippling implications on Navy’s ability to conduct realistic pre-deployment ASW training employing MFA sonar” and will “jeopardize the training and readiness of U.S. THIRD Fleet [strike groups].” Declaration of Vice Admiral Samuel J. Locklear. ¶¶ 9, 13. Likewise, Rear Admiral Bird opines that “[t]raining in surface ducting conditions is critical to effective training.” Bird decl. ¶ 52. In their classified declarations, Admiral Gary Roughead and Rear Admiral Ted N. Branch opine that both the 2200-yard shutdown zone and the power-down requirement in significant surface ducting conditions will create an unacceptable risk with respect to the Navy’s ability to certify its strike groups as combat ready and will thus profoundly affect national security.