March 5, 2026 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could change its vessel speed rules where North Atlantic right whales migrate along the East Coast, potentially easing seasonal speed restrictions and adopting new technology to help avoid vessel strikes, the agency said March 3.
The proposed “deregulatory action” by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service aims to “reduce unnecessary regulatory and economic burdens on the regulated community…with alternative management areas and advanced, technology-based, strike-avoidance measures that maintain or enhance conservation efficacy for the endangered North Atlantic right whale,” according to an agency notice in the Federal Register.
History and tradition hold that right whales were a preferred target of early American whalers for their habit of swimming on the sea surface, where they could be pursued by harpooners in small boats. Today the whales’ habits leave them vulnerable to accidental collision with vessels ranging from large sportfishing boats to commercial cargo ships.
The agency has used 10-knot speed limit advisories in waters off the East Coast during periods of higher right whale activity, aiming to reduce the chances of ship strikes.