The Port of Mobile has an estimated economic impact of $85 billion to Alabama each year.
A Rice's whale in the Gulf of Mexico. Rice's whales are a critically-endangered species, with only about 50 left.Port of Mobile officials are keeping a close eye on a new proposal that, if enacted, would force shipping companies to shut down operations in a stretch of the northern Gulf of Mexico during nighttime hours.
The MMC says Rice’s whales -- named for American biologist Dale Rice -- live primarily off the coast of the Florida Panhandle, in waters between 100-400 meters deep, which is why the proposal under consideration would shut down nighttime shipping between Tampa Bay and Pensacola, call for a 10-knot speed limit near the whales’ habitat, and extend about six miles out beyond the whales’ habitat zone.
The Port handles in excess of 55 million tons of domestic and international cargo and creates, both directly and indirectly, some 300,000 jobs. The Port also has an estimated tax impact of $2 billion. “If vessels have to stop nighttime operations, especially during winter months when the days are shorter, you’re losing half of your productivity. These vessels operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In this industry, the sooner you can get something where it’s going, the less it’s going to cost the cargo owner.”
Oliver said the Port of Mobile, like the Florida Ports Council, had submitted its official comments to NOAA, outlining their concerns about the proposal. She and other port officials are hopeful of finding a better way to protect the whales without negatively impacting shipping.
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