National Defense Bill to Help Safeguard Habitat for Puget Sound Orcas

12.08.22

National Defense Bill to Help Safeguard Habitat for Puget Sound Orcas

Cantwell: Federal investments will protect irreplaceable species relying on healthy Washington waters; NDAA includes provisions to help whales caught in fishing lines, reduce underwater noise pollution and enhance research, data collection

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 350-80 to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The legislation, which now heads to the Senate, includes key provisions to preserve and protect crucial Puget Sound habitat — and the orcas depending on it.

Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, authored key provisions of the NDAA that would enhance protections for the Puget Sound, including the Marine Mammal Research and Response Act she introduced last year.

“For the first time, this bill establishes a Puget Sound Office where the EPA, NOAA, and other federal partners will have an annual budget for research and recovery efforts to help clean up Puget Sound. The new law will also require the Coast Guard to review and improve oil spill response plans to ensure we are ready in the event of an oil spill or other pollution event. Lastly, our bill requires NOAA and the Coast Guard to work together to protect orcas and other marine life from vessel traffic impacts including noise, pollution, and ship strikes,” Sen. Cantwell said.

Provisions in the NDAA include:

• The Puget Sound Save Our Sound Act, which would:
  • Establish a Puget Sound Recovery National Program office within the Environmental Protection Agency;
  • Codify the Puget Sound Federal Leadership Task Force, which is made up of nine federal agencies that play a vital role in protecting the Puget Sound;
  • Authorize a $50 million annual budget to support Puget Sound recovery under this program.

• Provisions to protect Southern resident orcas and marine mammals, including:
  • A new pilot program to establish a whale desk within the Coast Guard Puget Sound Vessel Traffic Center. The desk would improve coordination between NOAA, the Coast Guard, and the maritime industry to reduce the risk of vessel traffic impacts on Southern resident orcas. This new program, modeled after Canada’s Whale Desk, would help track and proactively engage vessel operators to alert them to whale presence, as well as regulations and voluntary guidelines that are in place to protect the whales.
  • Expansion of near-real time monitoring of large whales to improve management and conservation of endangered species including Northern right whales and orcas. Real time monitoring and the new whale desk will help first responders track and mitigate impacts to orcas from day-to-day vessel traffic and protect them during emergencies, such as the August 2022 oil spill in Friday Harbor.
  • A $10 million annual competitive grant program to support ports that are proactively working to invest in measures to mitigate vessel impacts and improve conservation of marine mammals.
  • A $1.5 million annual allocation over five years for NOAA to expand the deployment of ocean noise observation systems for protecting marine life.
  • A bill introduced by Sen. Cantwell reauthorizing the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue and Response grant program, which provides competitive grants ?marine?mammals that are sick or injured in U.S. waters. Frequent grant recipients include the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Olympia-based Cascadia Research Collective, and the Friday Harbor-based Whale Museum. Funds have previously been used to support the rehabilitation of sick and injured Southern resident orcas, including Springer. ?This legislation would also:
    • Create a new emergency financial assistance program to help states, Tribes, academic institutions, and nonprofit organizations respond to large scale emergency events, including mass stranding or beaching of marine mammals;
    • Establish a Marine Mammal Health Map to analyze gaps in data to help scientists better understand how marine mammal populations are impacted by climate change and other impacts;
    • Launch a National Academy of Science study on the connection between ocean warming events, such as harmful algae blooms, and marine mammal mortality.??? 

• Provisions enhancing oil spill response operations, including:
  • Increased vessel response plan evaluations and oil spill response drills;
  • A Coast Guard study on national, regional, and local oil spill response plans and effectiveness;
  • A requirement that the best available data be used in oil spill preparedness and response.

• A provision authored by Sen. Cantwell to secure $800 million for up to six NOAA weather research aircraft for in order to:
  • Collect important climate and weather related data to help comminutes prepare for and monitor climate change and extreme weather.
    • This provision would also prioritize research into atmospheric rivers, which are common in Washington state and cause heavy rainfall.
  • Direct the Maritime Administration to improve the climate resiliency of our nation’s ports.

• A bill to improve federal research of bodies of water across the United States, including Puget Sound. The Bolstering Long Term Understanding and Exploration of the Great Lakes, Ocean, Bays and Estuaries, or?“BLUE GLOBE Act”,?would:
  • Require NOAA to conduct a focused study on future marine and maritime workforce needs;
  • Mandate that seral cooperative research institutes administered by NOAA prioritize the use of new technology to address current challenges in the ocean environments (for example, new technology and solutions needed to address the collection and removal of plastics in the ocean);
  • Establish an interagency program designed to provide a comprehensive “Blue Economy” assessment of value and impacts of natural resources, maritime industries, coastal communities, and military uses.?? 

• A requirement that the Maritime Administration, NOAA, and the EPA to conduct a study into the impact of contaminant-laden stormwater runoff on salmon and steelhead trout populations that return to spawn in urban streams across the Pacific Northwest, including:
  • Evaluating tire-related chemicals in stormwater runoff, and the impact of that runoff on salmon survival;
  • Providing recommendations for science and management needs to understand and ultimately address tire-related runoff.  
• A provision establishing Regional Ocean Partnerships to increase collaboration among states on shared ocean and coastal issues, including:
  • A $2.5 million authorization for the West Coast Ocean Alliance (WCOA), a partnership between Washington, Oregon, California and coastal Indian Tribes;
  • A $1 million authorization dedicated to supporting Tribal government engagement. The Makah, Quileute, and Quinault Nation Tribes are all members of WCOA.
• Crackdowns on illegal fishing and forced labor, including: 
  • A bill improving traceability and intergovernmental coordination needed to catch illegal fishermen on the high seas;
  • Training requirements for NOAA and Coast Guard personnel to identify instances of forced labor and child labor in the international fishing industry;
  • Stronger tools for NOAA and the Department of Homeland Security to end illegal fishing and forced labor, including denial of port privileges, improved certification, observer training, and capacity building in countries working to cut down on illegal fishing activity. 

The NDAA now heads to the Senate, where the bill is expected to be considered next week, before ultimately heading to the President’s desk.