Oceana Asks Court to Preserve North Atlantic Right Whale Protection
Press Release Date: January 15, 2026
Location: WASHINGTON
Contact:
Erin Vande Ven | email: EVandeVen@oceana.org | tel: 303.829.3877
This week, Oceana filed an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief in a lawsuit that threatens a key protection for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. The case was filed in March 2025 by a yacht owner who was fined for violating the Vessel Speed Rule (VSR). The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) created the rule in 2008 to protect North Atlantic right whales from ship strikes, but in the lawsuit, the yacht’s owner asserts the agency does not have authority to create slow zones to protect the whales.
The Vessel Speed Rule requires all boats 65 feet or longer to travel 10 knots or slower in seasonal mandatory slow zones and creates temporary voluntary slow zones when whales are present. Boat strikes are a leading cause of injury and death for North Atlantic right whales, of which only around 380 whales remain. Oceana’s filing provides important factual context on the best-available science supporting the rule. As explained in the brief, “with such low population numbers, the loss of each individual whale is a significant threat to recovery.” Research shows boats going 10 knots are less likely to kill a whale.
“This lawsuit presents a significant risk to one of the planet’s most endangered whales by threatening to erase one of the few protections North Atlantic right whales have,” said Oceana Senior Campaign Director Gib Brogan. “It also risks calling into question whether the federal government has the authority to reduce preventable harm to marine mammals. Oceana is grateful to the court for allowing us to contribute our expertise on this species, and believe the record will show that this rule is not only rooted in science but lawful and imperative to save North Atlantic right whales.”
The brief will help inform the judge about the need for the rule and how important it is to defend the government’s authority to impose safeguards designed to help recover a critically endangered marine mammal species. The judge will hear oral arguments in the lawsuit in April.
Background
North Atlantic right whales were a frequent target of whalers as they were often found near shore, swim slowly, and tend to float when killed. They were aggressively hunted, and their population dropped from peak estimates of up to 21,000 to perhaps fewer than 100 by the 1920s. After whaling of North Atlantic right whales was banned in 1935, their population increased to as many as 483 individuals in 2010. Unfortunately, that progress has reversed.
Collisions with boats is a leading cause of North Atlantic right whale injury and death. They are slow, swimming at speeds less than 4 miles (or an average of 6 kilometres) per hour, usually near the water’s surface. They are also dark in color and lack a dorsal fin, making them very difficult to spot. Studies have found that the speed of a vessel is a major factor in collisions with North Atlantic right whales. At high speeds, vessels cannot maneuver to avoid the whales, and they swim too slowly to be able to move out of the way. This puts them at great risk of being struck, which can cause deadly injuries from blunt-force trauma or cuts from propellers.
Entanglements in fishing gear used to catch lobster, crab, and other species is another leading cause of North Atlantic right whale deaths. Around one-quarter of the population is entangled in fishing gear from the U.S. and Canada each year, and about 85% have been entangled at least once. Ropes have been seen wrapped around their mouths, fins, tails, and bodies, which slow them down; make it difficult to swim, reproduce, and feed; and can cause death. The lines cut into the whales’ flesh, leading to life-threatening infections, and are so strong that they have severed fins and tails, and cut into bone.
A national poll of American voters conducted in 2024 found that an overwhelming majority support stronger protections for North Atlantic right whales. The poll found that 86% of American voters agree that North Atlantic right whales should be protected from human-caused threats to help prevent their extinction, and 83% agree that ocean activities that endanger North Atlantic right whales, like shipping, boating, and vertical-line fishing, should be adapted to protect them. Eight in ten respondents are in favor of the U.S. government making policy changes to save North Atlantic right whales from going extinct. Oceana’s poll, conducted by the nonpartisan polling company Ipsos using the probability-based KnowledgePanel®, surveyed 1,053 registered U.S. voters from June 28 to 30, 2024.
To learn more about Oceana’s campaign to save North Atlantic right whales from extinction, please click here.
