Opinion on Navy sonar sharply divided

By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Staff Writer

The debate over whether the Navy's planned low-frequency active sonar will harm marine animals continued yesterday at a public hearing in Waikiki.

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The Navy wants to be allowed to use this type of sonar — officially titled Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Low Frequency Active Sonar — to better detect enemy submarines at greater distances than other sonar. The sonar emits pings that bounce off objects and measure their range.

If approved, the Navy would agree to avoid "offshore biologically important areas" where marine mammals are known to gather for breeding, feeding, migrating and calving, but opponents said not enough research has been done on the project.

Some environmentalists are concerned about a shallow shelf called Penguin Banks — part of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary — that extends from the western end of Moloka'i into the Kaiwi Channel. Under the Navy agreement, the banks would be off limits to the sonar system from Nov. 1 to May 1 each year, when humpback whales are present.

But attorney Lanny Sinkin said he is concerned the sonar would potentially harm marine life in 80 percent of global waters. Navy sonar can disorient and kill whales and other sea mammals, he said, disrupting their navigational skills and leading them to beach themselves on shore.

"Continuous exposure to sonar can lead to temporary and permanent loss of hearing for these animals, as well as hemorrhaging to the brain, eyes and ears that leads to death," Sinkin said.

Joe Johnson, project manager for the Navy's environmental impact statement for the sonar project, responded that although marine animals become aware of the Navy sonar, a team of marine biologists have found little evidence that it is harmful to them.

"They're hearing the signal and having a modest reaction to it; they know it's there," Johnson said. "But in all cases, there have been no changes in normal behavior patterns."

Navy officials added that it was mid-frequency sonar, used since World War II, that may have disoriented or killed the marine animals, and it was unfair to assume that a low-frequency sonar system could result in the same problems.

U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink submitted written testimony yesterday opposing the Navy's use of the low-frequency sonar.

"The Navy's final EIS acknowledges that they really do not know how this technology will affect marine life," Mink wrote. "Not only does this sonar disrupt the behavior of animals at relatively low-levels... it could change behavior related to breeding and raising of young."

Mink asked the NOAA to delay the May 18 deadline for public comment by a month. She also asked the agency to hold a public hearing on Maui, where many of her constituents have concerns.

Scientist Rob Wilder of the Pacific Whale Foundation said the Navy has done inadequate research for its EIS on the various types of marine life species that could be affected by the sonar.

"It's unscientific and a rush job," Wilder said. He added that more studies need to be done on how the sonar would affect Hawaiian monk seals, dolphins and turtles around Hawaiian waters.

Chris Reid, a Big Island eco-tour diver, submitted testimony claiming that she became severely ill after the Navy used its sonar where she was diving. She also said dolphins swimming nearby reportedly began behaving differently when the sonar was in use.

"After spending 35-45 minutes in the water, I experienced a loss of equilibrium and other symptoms of physiological stress," Reid wrote. "(The symptoms) included fatigue, headaches, loss of appetite and nausea."

Johnson said the Navy strongly denies Reid's claim, saying Reid initially claimed she became ill on a dive when the Navy was not operating its sonar in the area.

"She is known to be one of the lead activists in Kona against this," said Johnson, adding that Navy divers did four years of testing on the possible effects of sonar on humans with no negative results.

The NOAA Fisheries now heads to Silver Springs, Maryland, on May 3 for the last of three national hearings on the matter.