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Press Release | March 18, 2019

U.S. Navy’s Environment Exhibit ‘Stewards of the Sea’ on Display at Wilmington Navy Week

U.S. Fleet Forces Command

NORFOLK, Va.   –  

The U.S. Navy’s ’Stewards of the Sea: Defending Freedom, Protecting the Environment’ exhibit is scheduled to be on display at Wilmington Navy Week, April 5-7.  Subject matter experts on the Navy’s environmental stewardship at sea will be available to talk with the media and the public at the exhibit.

The Navy is committed to proactive environmental stewardship and is doing its part to protect the environment and safeguard marine resources. The Navy shares the seas with marine life daily, and goes to great lengths to avoid harming marine life during training and testing at sea.

We employ every means available to mitigate the potential environmental effects of our activities without jeopardizing the safety of our Sailors or impacting our military readiness mission.  Before, during and after training and testing, the Navy implements protective measures to reduce the potential for our activities to impact marine species.  Protective measures include:

  • Posting trained lookouts to look for marine mammals and sea turtles
  • Using aerial assets and passive sonar to scan for marine mammals
  • Establishing mitigation zones to reduce sonar power or completely cease sonar transmissions when marine mammals are detected at certain distances
  • Establishing protective safety zones around detonations
  • Maneuvering vessels to avoid close interactions with marine mammals/endangered species
  • Employing software tools that increase ship operator awareness of geographic areas important to marine mammals
  • Avoiding anchoring, and explosive and non-explosive gunnery, missile, and bombing activities within 350 yards of reefs, shipwrecks and underwater cultural resources

The Navy also continues to invest in shipboard technologies and procedures that improve environmental compliance and protect marine life. These include plastic processors for plastic waste generated on the ship that result in zero plastics being discharged overboard.

The U.S. Fleet Forces Command-sponsored ‘Stewards of the Sea: Defending Freedom, Protecting the Environment’ exhibits are integral components of the U.S. Navy’s environmental outreach strategy. To learn more, please visit www.public.navy.mil/usff/environmental.

To learn more about Navy Weeks, which are the Navy’s signature outreach program, please visit www.outreach.navy.mil.