Expanded Sonar Use off West Coast, Jan. 26

Marine life advocates claim the use of sonar in the world’s oceans harm whales and other species such as seals, sea lions and dolphins. New concerns are being voiced after the U.S. Navy announced it is seeking permits to expand their sonar and other training exercises off Oregon, Washington and Northern California by deploying up to 720 sonobuoys about 12-miles off the Coast to improve their anti-submarine warfare training. A spokesperson for the Navy says the increase sounds dramatic but the impacts aren’t. Opponents disagree and claim the Navy is expanding training exercises without increasing efforts to reduce the impacts.