Update on Speed Restricted Zones
Speed Reduction Zones – TBF opposes the two recently issued proposals by NMFS and NOAA to apply extreme vessel speed reductions (10.5 mph) along the East Coast to all vessels 35 feet and longer when transiting Slowdown Zones. The goal of the first proposal aims to reduce vessel strikes of whales, yet documentation of whale strikes by vessels of 35 to 64 feet was not even included in the proposal. The Northern Right Whale has been listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1970, yet populations continue to decline. Failure by large container vessels (25% compliance) to comply