Regarding an issue that made it all the way to U.S. Supreme Court, the Navy and environmental groups settled out of court a case dealing with the potential harm done to whales and dolphins by sonar used in anti-submarine warfare training. The Navy agreed to spend $14.75 million in new marine mammal research (and $1.1 million for environmental group attorneys’ fees) and to publically disclose previously classified information of sonar use.

 

Major Turning Point in Our Fight to Save Whales (by Joel Reynolds, natural Resources Defense Council)

Lawsuit on Whales and Sonar Settled (by Tony Perry, Los Angeles Times)

NOAA, Court Focus On Marine Mammals (by Jeery Markon and Juliet Eilperin, Washington Post)