(LibertySociety.com) – Representative Jared Golden, D-Maine, is not holding back his criticism of the Biden administration for their approach to protecting the North Atlantic right whale population, which he considers to be anti-science. Rep. Golden argues that appeasement of environmental groups has been prioritized over actually doing something to protect the whales, with regulators unfairly targeting the Maine lobster industry instead of focusing on the things that actually kill them. In an interview with Fox News, Rep. Golden stated that “The hypocrisy part is what pisses me off,” claiming that there is no mystery in how the right whales are being killed, naming off cruise ships and freight vessels.
Rep. Golden said that the effects of oceanic wind turbine projects are overlooked and that regulators make decisions about potential risks to the right whale population from computer models, adding that “it’s been almost 20 years since there was a whale entanglement associated with the Maine lobster fishery.” He claimed that the lobster industry is being regulated to death without data to prove their necessity. Rep. Golden indicated he believes that the regulation of lobster fisheries is being used as a way to convince environmental groups that the government is actually doing something to protect the right whales.
Although the administration has been targeting the lobster industry, GOP lawmakers have expressed more concerns about wind projects off the coast of Maine and other states. However, the government has defended these projects despite calls from several lawmakers to put a stop to them. Rep. Golden and several Republican lawmakers recently sent a letter to government agencies, demanding more information about how wind projects can cause harm to marine life. However, federal officials have stated that there aren’t any known links between wind projects and harm to whales.
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