Comment from Aarluk and Associates Inc.
Aarluk and Associates Inc.SupportIndividual
Summary: An individual commenter expresses urgent concern for the survival of the Rice’s whale and advocates for more stringent protections. They specifically call for a permanent ban on oil and gas drilling, full enforcement of vessel speed limits, and the restoration of federal protections removed in early 2025.
If we don't work together to resolve the issues affecting the survival of the only 50 remaining Rice's whales - this species will be lost forever.
We need to strive towards achieving the following goals:
1.A permanent ban on oil and gas drilling in critical Rice’s whale habitat
2.Full enforcement of vessel speed limits below 10 knots throughout the corridor
3.Restore federal protections designed to reduce risks to Rice’s whales that were removed in February 2025 (These protections, previously issued by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), were designed to reduce threats to Rice’s whales from offshore industrial activity)
4.Full designation and enforcement of critical habitat protections under the Endangered Species Act.