The American Sportfishing Association is urging industry leaders to speak out against the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) North Atlantic Right Whale Vessel Speed Rule.
The rule was first proposed in 2022 by the NOAA organisation and called for many small recreational boats in designated seasonal areas along the East Coast to travel at a maximum of 10 knots for up to seven months out of the year.
The American Sportfishing Association says the proposal would have created serious consequences for the sportfishing community without providing meaningful conservation improvements for whales.
The NOAA withdrew the expanded version of the rule which would have restricted the speed of boats 35 to 64 feet in 2024 and is now assessing the underlying 2008 rule for larger vessels over 65 feet through a formal public comment process.
New technologies
The agency is seeking public input on how new technologies, updated science and vessel-specific risk assessments can help shape a smarter and more balanced approach.
Among those campaigning for greater use of technology is Viking which says it supports NOAA’s goal of protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale and agrees that technology-based solutions must be part of the path forward.
The rule should account for today’s technology, vessel-specific risk and how modern recreational boats are built, equipped and operated.
“This review is long overdue, and now is the time for the marine industry to act,” said Viking president and CEO Pat Healey.
“We need to put real-world information into the record – vessel technology, navigation tools, offshore operating conditions, vessel-size risk, safety concerns and the economic impact on coastal businesses.
“That is how we help make sure the rule protects whales while reflecting today’s technology, safety and access.”
Real-time detection
Viking has carried out research using a 24-foot Contender yacht equipped with real-time detection, predictive risk mapping, information sharing and onboard alert systems designed to reduce the risk of vessel strikes while maintaining safe navigation.
The company says that the 2008 rule was adopted before many of today’s detection, awareness and navigation technologies were available – and before those systems reached the level of precision, reliability and adoption found on modern boats.
Viking believes those tools, combined with the maneuverability of recreational vessels, must be part of the regulatory solution.
“This is not about eliminating protections,” said John DePersenaire, Viking’s director of government affairs and sustainability.
“It is about moving forward with NOAA’s preferred way of mitigating vessel-strike risk – technology.”
Comments can be made through NMMA’s Boating United call to action or through the Federal Register.
The deadline is June 2.
