In order to proceed with the blasting to explore for potential oil drilling sites, the companies involved need to get permission, called Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA’s) to harm marine life.
The National Marine Fisheries Service is reviewing requests from five corporations (hired by oil and gas companies), to harm marine life called “Intentional Harassment Authorizations (IHA’s)” with seismic testing.
The testing uses as many as 48 giant airguns per ship and blast the ocean. The testing can shock, stun, and kill marine life. The permits could allow 138,000 marine mammals to be harmed.
President Pamela Goodman, in a letter to Secretary Ryan Zinke, Department of the Interior, asks the National Marine Fisheries Service to deny the Incidental Harassment Authorization applications and oppose the taking of marine mammals during activities related to seismic airgun blasting for offshore oil and gas exploration in the Atlantic Ocean..
