Stop harassment of polar bears and belugas in Arctic seas
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Office of Naval Research's Arctic Research Activities in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas (Year 9)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration· Beaufort Sea, Chukchi SeaFederal Register 2026-14816 ↗
The Navy wants a ninth straight year of legal permission to disturb polar bears, ringed seals, and belugas in Arctic waters.
What’s at risk
Polar bears, ringed seals, and beluga whales in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas face repeated disturbance from military research operations. These are already climate-stressed, ice-dependent species with little buffer against added pressure.
If this goes through
The Navy receives another year of legal cover to harass these animals, extending a pattern now running nine consecutive years with a possible automatic renewal built in.
Our plain-English read of the official notice ↗. Check it against the agency’s own words below.
4 holes in the agency’s own analysis
What the public could have raised, from the agency’s own document
- I oppose this action as proposed, and I ask the agency to weigh the specific harms below.
- NMFS should deny the Incidental Harassment Authorization that would permit the Navy's Office of Naval Research to legally harass polar bears, ringed seals, and belugas in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas.
- This would be the ninth consecutive year NMFS has considered authorizing these disturbances to ice-dependent marine mammals in Arctic waters, showing a pattern of repeated harm to vulnerable species.
- The Marine Mammal Protection Act authorization being proposed here would also allow a one-time renewal, potentially extending permitted harassment of these Arctic species beyond the initial approval period.
- Polar bears, ringed seals, and belugas already face threats in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, and NMFS should not add legally sanctioned military research harassment on top of existing pressures on these ice-dependent animals.
Show all 6 points from the document
- Say something only you can say. The law requires the agency to consider and respond to substantive comments, and specifics are what make a comment substantive.
In the agency’s own words
NMFS has received a request from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to Arctic Research Activities (ARA) in the Beaufort Sea and eastern Chukchi Sea. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to incidentally take marine mammals during the specified activity. NMFS is also requesting comments on a possible one- time, 1-year renewal that could be issued under certain circumstances and if all requirements are met, as described in Request for Public Comments at…
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