Dolphins Spotted in the East River as Conservation Legal Battle Begins

ZHOUYA MA, HOST: A few lucky New Yorkers this month have gotten peeks into rare ocean wildlife surrounding the city. Researchers say these sightings are a promising sign that environmental protection laws have helped vulnerable marine populations grow. But as Hannah Weaver reports, Congress is trying to roll back these protections.

HANNAH WEAVER, BYLINE: Tiffany Tsou was chilling in the break room at her office building when she spotted something through the window in the East River — ripples in the water that looked odd.

TSOU: I was like, wait, this is suspicious.

(SOUNDBITE FROM TSOU)

TSOU: There was a giant dolphin that just completely breached the water and jumped out there.

And at that point, I'm, I'm like, “Guys, I just saw a dolphin!” And like, people around me

are just like, now pressed up against the windows, and we're trying to spot them also.

(SOUNDBITE FROM TSOU)

WEAVER: Those dolphins have been hanging out in the area for nearly two weeks now — likely a mother and calf — of common dolphins. It’s easy to tell because of the signature yellow stripe on their sides. But despite their name, they’re not seen that often in the city’s waterways. Maxine Montello is with the New York Marine Rescue Center.

MONTELLO: My concern, you know, East River wise, is that kind of overlap with humans.

WEAVER: Like the ones steering boats in New York City’s busy waters.

MONTELLO: People are intrigued by these animals and want to get closer and get the best photo. But by doing so, you're kind of altering the animal's behavior and it’s considered sort of a term of harassment.

WEAVER: Before Dutch colonists arrived, New York’s waterways were full of fish, porpoises, and whales. Take humpbacks, for example. Whalers hunted them nearly to extinction, and they were endangered for many years. But their population has since recovered. Researchers say that’s because of laws like the Endangered Species Act. It protects vulnerable species habitats and develops recovery plans. The Marine Mammal Protection Act is similar. It prohibits killing, capturing or harrassing marine mammals. Fines for violating the law go up to $10,000.

MONTELLO: So if someone takes a seal home with them, or someone hurts a whale, all of that can be investigated through those acts, and fines are set through that.

WEAVER: But both laws, which were enacted in the 70s, are now on the chopping block. Yesterday, The House Committee on Natural Resources met to evaluate them. Republican committee members argued the laws leave too much room for interpretation and give federal agencies too much power. Here’s committee chair, Harriet Hageman [HAY-guh-MIN]

HAGEMAN: For far too long, this legislative body has taken the easy way out, writing vague and ambiguous laws riddled with undefined terms and broad authorities.

WEAVER: Montello and other researchers are adamant that these laws are vital in keeping our ecosystems balanced.

MONTELLO: If you remove a top predator, a top trophic species, things just spiral out of control within our ecosystems, which do directly affect us.

WEAVER: What marine mammals eat, and what they poop, helps keep the oceans — and us — healthy. Whale excrement fertilizes phytoplankton, which is how the oceans capture a third of the planet’s carbon dioxide.

Hannah Weaver, Columbia Radio News.