The offshore wind could be the cause of 6 stranded whales

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Advocacy groups think they know why the New Jersey region saw half a dozen whales beached in 33 days: offshore wind energy infrastructure.

On Monday, two days after a 30ft humpback whale washed ashore in Atlantic City, ocean advocacy organizations sent a letter to President Joe Biden, demanding an immediate investigation into recent whale deaths and calling for a break from all the wind activity going on offshore. .

“We have never heard of six whales stranded in 33 days,” said Cindy Zipf, executive director of Long Branch-based Clean Ocean Action. “We don’t know how many whales died offshore.”

Zipf hosted a press conference on the beach in Atlantic City on Monday afternoon. Prior to Saturday’s incident, the resort saw a beached whale on December 23.

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On December 5, a baby sperm whale washed up in Keansburg, and on December 10, a juvenile humpback whale was spotted along Strathmere Beach. Dead whales were found off the coast of New York on December 6 and 12.

None of the whales had obvious causes of death, such as ship strikes or predator attacks, the groups noted.

“The only thing different this year compared to previous years is the tremendous amount of offshore pre-construction and development activity being carried out by the offshore wind industry,” Zipf said.

A dead dolphin washed ashore Jan. 2 alongside Sandy Hook.

Letter to President Biden

In a letter dated Jan. 9, Clean Ocean Action and groups supporting the COA mission cited whale deaths as “an urgent, timely and serious concern.”

“The species statuses of these whales are all protected or endangered,” the letter states.

The letter makes three demands:

An immediate and transparent investigation into the deaths from Cape May, New Jersey, to Montauk Point, New York A halt to all current offshore wind energy development activities in the region until the cause of the marine mammal deaths is determined be determinedA complete halt to behind-the-scenes wind energy work, such as permits, solicitations, and rental activities until the cause of death of marine mammals is determined

“We’re not opposed to the idea of ​​offshore wind development, but we want to make sure it’s done right,” Zipf said at the press conference. “Until we know more, it’s too much, too soon.”

In addition to COA, the letter was signed by Protect Our Coast NJ, Save LBI, Long Island Commercial Fishing Association and Defend Brigantine Beach.

Suzanne Hornick of Protect Our Coast NJ said “offshore wind is not the way to go” in the government’s quest to rely more on clean energy.

“We believe this will cause more pollution and animal deaths than necessary,” Hornick said. “There are better, cheaper and cleaner alternatives, and that’s what we should be investing our money in.”

Dino Flammia is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at [email protected]

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