In its role as an environmental steward, the Navy strives to minimize the potential impacts of naval activities on the marine environment while still achieving its mission to train, equip, and maintain capable Sailors. The Navy invests in scientific research and collects data on the presence and behavior of marine species in areas where it trains to determine whether naval activities are impacting species, and if so, how.
The Navy funds data collection from multiple passive acoustic monitoring sites in the Gulf of Alaska. Data from these sites are used for characterizing ambient sound levels and detecting the presence of vocalizing marine species. The Navy provides reports on its training activities in the Gulf of Alaska, and findings from the passive acoustic monitoring, to the National Marine Fisheries Service. These reports are available to the public.
For more information, please visit the Navy’s Marine Species Monitoring Program website or view the Marine Species Monitoring in the Gulf of Alaska brochure.