House Passes Important New Protections for Whales

“The U.S. House of Representatives has voted in support of a slew of new protections for whales and marine mammals. These protections include measures to reduce vessel collisions with large whales and new programs aimed at reducing chronic underwater noise from vessels. If enacted, they would amount to the most substantial new legislative measures for marine mammals in years.

The measures came via an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for FY22 (NDAA) filed by Representative Rick Larsen (D-WA), and co-sponsored by Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona; Reps. Derek Kilmer, Suzan DelBene, Marilyn Strickland, and Kim Schrier of Washington; and Rep. Alan Lowenthal of California.”