Washington, DC (June 16, 2023) –In response to reports of a spate of whale deaths off the North East Coast of the United States, Arlo Hemphill, Greenpeace USA’s Senior Oceans Campaigner, said: “There is no evidence whatsoever linking offshore wind to whale deaths. The manufactured hysteria is the result of fake news promoted by politicians, big oil, and their cronies to save the oil and gas industry, which is fueling the climate crisis, destroying biodiversity, harming people’s health, and hastening social injustice. We must not allow baseless accusations to stall the transition to green, renewable energy or address the true threats to whale populations.”
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which has been tracking the whale strandings and studying the remains, has identified human interaction as the primary cause of the deaths, including ship-strike injuries, entanglement in fishing nets, and ingestion of marine plastic pollution.
Hemphill continued: “From a scientific and fact-based standpoint, the best way to protect whales is to implement the Global Ocean Treaty, which will be adopted this month, to establish ocean sanctuaries that protect biodiversity. We should also encourage world leaders, including the Biden Administration, to support a strong Global Plastics Treaty that achieves an immediate and significant reduction in plastic production, establishes a path to end virgin plastic production, and promotes a shift to refill- and reuse-based economies.”
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Contact: Tanya Brooks, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, P: 703-342-9226, E: [email protected]
Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.
