Alito, Roberts, the Navy vs. Whales and the Environment

Who says that Roberts and Alito aren't conservative? From the LA Times, on the issue of the Navy being forced to turn off its sonars when within 1.2 miles of espied whales. It is a display of blatant disingenuousness:

"Roberts faulted judges in California for "second-guessing" the views of Navy leaders. "Where the public interest lies does not strike us as a close question," he said.

Roberts also questioned whether whales have indeed been harmed by sonar. He said the Navy had been operating off the California coast for 40 years "without a single documented sonar-related injury to any marine mammal."

The Natural Resources Defense Council and other environmental groups strongly disagreed. They say studies conducted around the world have shown that the piercing underwater sounds cause whales to flee in panic. These studies said some whales have beached themselves and have shown signs of bleeding in their ears as a result of high-powered sonar."

The Washington Post offers further details:

"At issue in the case is the Navy's use of a type of sonar that can detect quiet new submarines deployed by China, North Korea and other potential adversaries. Environmental groups sued the Navy to demand restrictions on 14 training exercises scheduled from February 2007 to January 2009 in the waters off Southern California, which are shared by 37 species of marine mammals including whales, dolphins and sea lions.

Roberts noted in his opinion that the parties strongly disputed the extent to which the Navy's training exercises harm the marine mammals or disrupt their behavioral patterns. The Navy claimed it has used mid-frequency active (MFA) sonar in such exercises off the Southern California coast for 40 years "without a single documented sonar-related injury to any marine mammal," Roberts wrote. At most, that type of sonar might cause temporary hearing loss or brief disruptions of the mammals' behavioral patterns, the Navy asserted.

The plaintiffs in the case, led by the Natural Resources Defense Council, contended that sonar can cause much more serious injuries than the Navy has acknowledged, including permanent hearing loss and decompression sickness, and that it can lead to mass whale strandings. Certain species such as beaked whales are especially susceptible to mid-frequency sonar, but the Navy would not necessarily be able to detect their injuries because these whales dive deeply and spend little time at the surface, the environmental groups argued."

As for worrying about China and Korea, they just really don't care about the U.S. except insofar as they can make money of the U.S. economy, which is a really long shot right about now. Why is the U.S. always searching for scapegoats to justify unnecessary expenditures that pad the coffers of their flunkies, lobbyists and others who have these politicians in their pockets? Oh, perhaps that is the answer.