Great news for boaters along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States: NOAA Fisheries has officially retracted its proposal for the North Atlantic Right Whale Vessel Strike Reduction Rule. This rule aimed to enforce speed limits of 10 knots on recreational boats over 35 feet long from northern Florida to the Northeast for up to seven months annually. The proposal, introduced on August 1, 2022, as an amendment to the current right whale vessel speed reduction rule, received around 90,000 public comments, leading to its withdrawal.
NOAA stated, “The comments received covered various aspects of the rule and represented diverse opinions. Despite extensive efforts, NMFS lacks the time to finalize this regulation in the current Administration due to the extensive public feedback.”
Since 2008, there have been 12 fatal incidents of right whale vessel strikes, with five involving vessels under 65 feet long. NOAA estimates the total right whale population at around 350, with approximately 100 females. While there was a population increase from 1990 to 2010, a decline in reproduction has been observed in the past decade, exacerbated by entanglement in fishing gear. The American Sportfishing Association reports that the likelihood of a vessel between 35 and 65 feet hitting a right whale is less than one in a million.
The withdrawal of the rule does not prevent NOAA Fisheries from taking future steps to safeguard endangered right whales from vessel collisions, and the existing speed regulations will remain in force.
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