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When French oceanographer Jacques
Cousteau made a documentary about

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earth's oceans in 1956
he called it the Silent World. But

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contrary to this title and the pristine
underwater world

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you might imagine our oceans are far
from silent

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In reality the ocean is a noisy place
and sea creatures have relied on sound

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to survive for millions of years

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But today's oceans are louder than ever.
In the last 100 years

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human activity in the oceans has
increased dramatically

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and because sound travels farther under
water than it does above the surface

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noise from this activity can travel for
thousands of miles

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massively disrupting the marine
soundscape

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Underwater noise is a topic often
overlooked in conversations about

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pollution
Still noise pollution poses a serious

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threat to marine ecosystems
and noise from commercial ships is one

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of the key contributors
Globalization and consumerism have

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contributed to the rapid growth of the
global shipping industry

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as goods are transported from cheap
production sites to consumer hotspots

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halfway across the world
This demand has driven an economic boom

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in the commercial shipping industry with
the total cargo transported globally

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valued over 4 trillion dollars per year
researchers estimate that rapid growth

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in ship traffic in the past half century
has led the intensity of underwater

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noise caused by ships to
double every 10 years. In addition to

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commercial shipping
the oil and gas industry has contributed

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greatly to oceanic noise pollution
Oil and gas companies use seismic

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surveys of the ocean floor to find
locations for drilling

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They sound something like this [noise from seismic survey]

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Like the din of commercial ships noise
from seismic air gun surveys in the

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Atlantic
is likely to increase in the near future

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Sounds from ships and seismic surveys
cause physical damage and even death of

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sea creatures up and down the food chain
from whales and dolphins to fish and

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zooplankton
They also drown out communication sounds

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important for survival
One species particularly at risk is the

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North Atlantic right whale
The right whale is one of the world's

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most endangered whale species with only
about 400 remaining individuals

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Due to the Trump administration's
deregulation of offshore drilling

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five companies are planning on carrying
out seismic mapping along the entire

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eastern seaboard of the United States
As this figure shows the area these

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companies hope to survey overlaps with
the right whale critical habitat

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This area off the coast of South
Carolina, Georgia and Northern Florida

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is the only known calving grounds for
right whale

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Right whales use sound to coordinate
many behaviors critical to their

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survival and reproduction
Vocalization allows them to forge groups

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and find mating partners
However, according to a study conducted

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in Massachusetts Bay
right whales have lost up to 63 to 67

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percent of their communication space in
the area

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hindering their ability to hear and
communicate with each other

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Researchers have also studied the
effects of noise pollution on whale's

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health and hormone levels
In a landmark study conducted after the

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events of 9/11
researchers found that stress hormones

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in the feces of right whales in Canada's
Bay of Fundy

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dropped significantly due to shipping
restrictions and temporary reduction of

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noise pollution that followed
This evidence suggests that noise

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pollution from commercial shipping poses
a real threat

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to the right whale's well-being and
consequently their survival as a species

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Listen to what happens when a passing
ship enters the sound sphere of right

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whales [ship and whale noises]
The research on noise pollution is

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conclusive we must take urgent action on
the issue if we hope to maintain

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ecosystem integrity and save at-risk
species such as right whales

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One solution to the noise pollution
crisis is government policy and

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regulation
Because high noise levels from

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commercial ships have been proven to
increase hormonal stress in wales

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regulating shipping speeds and volumes
could be affective if enforced well

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One way to promote action is to create
financial incentives for companies to

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use quieter ships
For example governments could institute

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a sound tax system on ships,
a cap and trade system in the shipping

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industry or impose fines on companies
whose commercial ships exceed a certain

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volume
Similar policies have been adopted in

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the Boston area. In an effort to conserve
the right whale population

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NOAA has helped to implement regulations
that alter shipping routes in order to

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prevent interference with right whales
near Boston Harbor

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This policy is a great example of a way
that simple policy can benefit marine

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life while not sacrificing much for
humans

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If you wish to save species such as the
right whale it will require urgent and

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collaborative international and domestic

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policy

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