Assessing Potential Sites for Undersea Warfare Training Ranges: The Effects of Active Sonars on Marine Mammals

Abstract

The U.S. Navy is preparing a draft environmental impact statement/overseas environmental impact statement (DEIS/OEIS) for what will be the proposed site for an undersea warfare training range (USWTR). The DEIS includes an assessment of the effects of Navy active acoustic sonars on marine mammals during range exercises as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Newport, RI, has assessed four sites: Jacksonville, FL; Charleston, SC; Onslow Bay, NC: and Wallops Island, VA. This report describes the input data and analysis methods used to estimate the number of marine mammals that could be affected by the operation of Navy tactical acoustic sonar systems at the four potential USWTR sites.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 28, 2008
Accession Number
ADA495331

Entities

People

  • Bert E. Neales
  • Thomas N. Fetherston
  • Yadira V. Gilchrest

Organizations

  • Naval Undersea Warfare Center

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Sensors

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acoustic Properties
  • Acoustic Signals
  • Acoustics
  • Cells
  • Detection
  • Environment
  • Habitats
  • Marine Mammals
  • Naval Operations
  • Naval Warfare
  • Navy
  • Odontocetes
  • Repetition Rate
  • Seabed
  • Sonar Decoys
  • Undersea Warfare
  • Uss Shoup

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Proposed Air Force Base Actions.
  • Marine Mammal Biology
  • Maritime and Naval Warfare Studies