US finds endangered Gulf of Mexico whale threatened by oil and gas vessel strikes

The Trump administration published a long-awaited environmental assessment on Tuesday that found that vessel strikes related to oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico are likely to jeopardize the existence of the endangered Rice's whale.

The analysis, known as a biological opinion, governs how endangered and threatened marine species should be protected from oil and gas activities in the region, which President Donald Trump has renamed the Gulf of America.

There are an estimated 51 Rice's whales in the Gulf, according to the analysis, which sets speed restrictions and a requirement for vessels to maintain a 500-meter (547 yards) minimum distance from the species if spotted.

A federal judge last year ordered the National Marine Fisheries Service to revise its previous assessment because it did not adequately address risks species face from oil spills and vessel strikes.

Oil and gas industry groups had warned that if the revised document was not produced by the judge's deadline of May 21 that vital energy operations would be shut down.

Those groups, the American Petroleum Institute (API) and National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), welcomed publication of the analysis but criticized the finding that oil and gas activities threatened the Rice's whale population.

"As we continue reviewing the new opinion, we are concerned by the inclusion of a jeopardy finding for the Rice's whale," NOIA President Erik Milito said in a statement. "That determination appears inconsistent with the best available science and triggers unnecessary regulatory uncertainty."

An environmental group that had sued to protect the Rice's whale from oil and gas activities said the restrictions on drillers did not go far enough.

"It’s just as inadequate for protecting rare marine species as the last biological opinion was," said Chris Eaton, an attorney with Earthjustice. "For Rice's whales, it allows activities over the next 45 years that the Fisheries Service admits will kill nine whales and seriously injure three more."