| | | They need sound for their survival – but because commercial ships are polluting our oceans with noise, our marine life is struggling. Now there's a proposal that would turn down the volume, help whales, dolphins, fish and invertebrates, and even reduce deadly ship strikes. Join the call to the EU Commission to make it happen: | | | | | Dear friends, | | From tiny fish to the biggest whales: the vast majority of our marine life rely on sound for their survival. Dolphins and whales use sound to maintain social bonds, coordinate hunting, and communicate over long distances; many fish use sound to attract mates and to detect predators.
But our oceans have become noisy, with commercial ships drowning out the natural sounds of the ocean and putting our marine life at risk.
Now Europe could turn down the volume with the stroke of a pen – by supporting a "Blue Speeds" proposal. Experts say just making ships go 5 - 10% more slowly could bring noise pollution down by a quarter!
A new European Commission is about to take office, giving us a perfect window to get this plan up top on their agenda. Join now and let's build a citizens' call too great to ignore: | | | | | Noise pollution isn't the only problem that would be addressed with slower speeds: tens of thousands of whales are killed by ship strikes every year – and those deaths would be significantly reduced, too.
Just like schools have speed limits on neighbouring streets to protect children, shipping lanes could be made much safer for marine inhabitants.
Although many of us live far from busy ports and the sea, and may not think much about the shipping industry in our everyday lives, its environmental impact is significant, negatively affecting global pollution and marine ecosystems everywhere.
Experts say this Blue speed limit is the most viable and achievable solution to make our oceans safer and less noisy: it has a great ecological benefit; in Europe alone it could save the shipping industry 3.4 billion euros in fuel consumption every year; and it contributes to the EU achieving its environmental goals. And if Europe takes leadership on this matter – other countries and regions could follow suit.
We rely on healthy seas to curb global warming, for our freshwater supply, and for food production – so for the sake of our marine life and for ourselves – let's call on Europe to be a pioneer now – Avaaz will join IFAW to bring our voices to the heart of Brussels: | | | | Avaaz has campaigned to protect our oceans for over a decade, and just a couple of weeks ago we sent a campaign to stop the whale hunt in Iceland. Let's come together again now for this structural solution that will help safeguard all marine life we depend on.
With hope and determination,
Alice, Antonia, Nate, and the rest of the Avaaz team | | | | | | |
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