Environmental organizations filed suit Monday against the National Marine Fisheries Service to demand it force the Navy to consider alternatives to its five-year plan that will intensify its sonar use off California and Hawaii.
Earthjustice, representing several groups, sued in federal court in Honolulu, hours after the federal agency said it had decided to grant the Navy permits to move ahead with its Pacific training and testing plans.
Navy officials say its activities would have a negligible impact on marine mammal populations. Environmentalists dispute that and favor creating zones that would be off-limits to biologically sensitive areas. They also want the Navy to avoid training in certain spots seasonally when they are rich in marine life. - AP