On January 16, 2025, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) withdrew a proposed rule that would have amended the North Atlantic right whale vessel speed regulations and affected maritime navigation in a large area off the East Coast, including Vineyard and Nantucket Sounds. The Rule’s proposed changes included the following: expanding the number of regulated vessels subject to speed restrictions (dropping the minimum length of regulated vessels from 65 feet to 35 feet); increasing the size and extending the timing of seasonal speed zones; and introducing temporary speed zones when right whales were known to be present in areas outside of seasonal zones. The proposed rule was the latest effort by NMFS to protect the North Atlantic right whale, a marine mammal that was first listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1970.
NMFS received over 90,000 public comments since the rule was first published in the Federal Register on August 1, 2022. It had been of interest to a wide range of parties including conservation groups, the fishing industry, boaters, and residents of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket.
Advocates who lobbied for the rule hoped that it would minimize vessel strikes and restore the health of the right whale population (estimated by NMFS to be only 370). On the other hand, representatives from the boating and fishing industry maintained that the rule would cause substantial economic harm to coastal communities, marine retailers, and recreational boaters. They argued that NMFS had relied on incomplete data and assumptions and ignored existing technologies. Numerous state and local officials also opposed the rule, arguing it would cause reductions in ferry service to and from Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket and harm the local economy while affording no meaningful increase in protection for right whales.
According to NMFS, the volume of public comments resulted in a lack of sufficient time to finalize the rule during the Biden Administration, leading to its withdrawal. Nevertheless, the existing North Atlantic right whale vessel speed regulations (50 CFR 224.105) remain in effect: vessels 65 feet or longer must reduce speeds to 10 knots in designated areas during specific seasons. Additionally, NMFS’s decision to withdraw the rule does not preclude it from taking future rule making action to address vessel strikes.
For questions on this development, please contact Brian Beaton.