East Coast Seasonal Management Areas
Location Summary
Since 2022, officers with NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement have been strategically deploying a Mobile Marine Monitor (M3) system along the eastern seaboard of the US to monitor vessel speed in North Atlantic right whale Seasonal Management Areas. While transiting these areas, vessels of a certain size are required to limit their speeds to reduce lethal strikes of the endangered population, and radar provides an independent measure of a vessel’s speed. The speed limit is only in effect during months when the whales are present. And as the whales migrate, the M3 system is relocated to monitor the seasonally active areas — a clear example of how the mobility of M2 can help maximize resources across a dynamic management system.
Read more about NOAA's efforts using M2 here.
