Wind farm construction is a possible cause of dead whales washing ashore in New Jersey.

Question

Is a surge in whale deaths on the Atlantic Coast caused by underwater sounds related to wind energy?

"Dead whales are washing up on the Jersey shore in record numbers, and so far there’s one very curious possible cause: green energy," read an Instagram post by Faust Checho, a podcast host and actor.

"They’re building large-scale wind farms off the East Coast — conducting underwater surveys before construction," he said in the video post. "They’re using pulses of low-frequency sound beneath the ocean’s surface."

Answer 1

NOAA actually has an official statement on this in their website regarding whale deaths being caused by wind farms.

"At this point, there is no scientific evidence that noise resulting from offshore wind site characterization surveys could potentially cause whale deaths. There are no known links between large whale deaths and ongoing offshore wind activities."

Based on this I would agree with the claim of the original article in that the claim that wind farms are leading to whale deaths is false.

Comments

I appreciate that you used the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as your source because it is a reliable government organization. Using the information you provided, I found the following article that substantiates your conclusion

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/marine-life-distress/frequent-questions-offshore-wind-and-whales