Subject: Re: ATOC
Tom Ford (tjfketos@devo.ultranet.com)
Tue, 10 Dec 96 00:02:16 -0500
Dear Vernoy,
The sounds generated by ATOC , at a close range, could be harmful to
marine mammals. The key to all of this is how close the animals are to
the sound source. The pressure of the sound or percieved intensity drops
dramatically with distance. It is my understanding that the sounds are
started at low intensity and slowly raised to full power. This allows for
no sudden sonic "surprises" for marine mammals near the sATOC source. An
unannounced blast close to an animal would certainly be harmful and
painful.
We have filled the ocean with unnatural sounds. Commercial shipping,
oil exploraton sound sources , sonar, and drilling platforms have all
added to the unnatural level of sound at sea. These sounds can have
negative effects on nearby animals depending on where in the ocean these
sounds occur. In shallow waters most sounds are intensified. If the noise
disrupts migration routes or the ability of whales to detect food sources
then, yes the effect is negative.There are of course different levels of
negativity. Whales can adapt to changing conditions but it is up to
responsible investigators to determine how to operate programs like ATOC
and acheive minimal long term effects on whales et. al..
Dr. Dan Costa has an ongoing study on the effects of ATOC. His email
address is COSTA@BIOLOGY.UCSC.EDU. Dr. Hal Whitehead has been eloquent
in his critiques of the program. His email address is HWHITEHE@AC.DAL.CA
. Nobody has,as yet, any final answers on ATOC and the impacts it may
have on whales. I do beleive that competent and exhaustive studies are
being made to protect whales from harm.
Dr. Tom Ford