RES 411 Draft 01 2004-2006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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-p~'yn w V U- ••~L COUNTY OF HAWAII STATE OF HAWAII "a:•a+' RESOLUTION NO. 41g 06 A RESOLUTION OPPOSING USE OF TACTICAL MID-FREQUENCY ACTIVE SONAR IN THE CONDUCT OF THE 2006 RIM OF THE PACIFIC (RIMPAC) ANTI- SUBMARINE WARFARE EXERCISES IN THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. WHEREAS, the RIMPAC is amulti-national training exercise that has been conducted every other year since 1968, and this year, RIMPAC is scheduled to occur June 26 through July 28, 2006, with exercises using tactical mid-frequency active sonar planned on 21 days; and WHEREAS, the mid-frequency sound generated by the tactical sonaz used in the RIMPAC exercises has the potential to disrupt the behavior of individual marine mammals in close proximity to the exercises; and WHEREAS, on July 3, 2004, more than 150 melon-headed whales were stranded in the shallow waters of Hanalei Bay, Kauai during the RIMPAC 2004 sonar exercises which took place on July 2 and July 3, 2004; and WHEREAS, as melon-headed whales are deep-water cetaceans and it is unusual for them to gather so close to shore, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) stated that "...active sonar transmissions on the 2"d and 3rd of July are a plausible, if not likely, contributing factor to the animals entering and remaining in the bay..."; and WHEREAS, the NOAA approved the U.S. Navy's Incidental Harassment Authorization application, which determined that the RIMPAC 2006 exercises would cause no significant environmental impact under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); and WHEREAS, the Deputy Secretary of Defense issued a memorandum determining that "...it is necessary for the national defense to exempt all military readiness exercises that employ mid-frequency active sonar during major training exercises..."; and WHEREAS, this unprecedented step by the U.S. Department of Defense, declazing the U.S. Navy exempt from the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act, applies to the RIMPAC 2006 exercises which aze taking place near the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument recently created under Executive Order by President George W. Bush; and WHEREAS, the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and other conservation groups filed suit in federal court, resulting in a finding by the U.S. District Court that the U.S. Navy violated NEPA requirements and the issuance of a temporary restraining order barring the U.S. Navy from using mid-frequency active sonar during the RIMPAC 2006 exercises; and WHEREAS, the protection of whales and other marine mammals is of environmental, social, cultural and historic importance to the citizens of the County of Hawaii; and