In its role as an environmental steward, the Navy strives to minimize the potential impacts of naval activities on the marine environment while still achieving its mission to train, equip, and maintain capable Sailors. The Navy invests in scientific research and collects data on the presence and behavior of marine species in areas where it trains and conducts tests to determine whether naval activities are impacting species, and if so, how.
The Navy monitors marine species during marine mammal density surveys in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, conducts pinniped satellite tracking in the Puget Sound, and models the offshore distribution of Southern Resident killer whales to better understand species occurrence. The Navy provides annual reports of training and testing activities and monitoring studies to the National Marine Fisheries Service. These reports are also available to the public.
For more information, please visit the Navy’s Marine Species Monitoring Program website.
Environmental Stewardship
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