KETCHIKAN — The U.S. Navy is planning to more than double the number of training events conducted in the West Behm Canal north of Ketchikan.
In an agreement signed Oct. 31, the Navy announced it will increase the number of testing events involving vessels at the Southeast Alaska Acoustic Measurement Facility will increase from about 28 in a year to 60, The Ketchikan Daily News reported.
The Navy will also conduct new activities in Behm Canal, including cold-water training, “countermeasures” testing and electromagnetic measurement.
The Navy estimates that the Behm area will see 2,762 hours a year of acoustic stress related to testing. The Southeast Alaska Acoustic Measurement Facility — commonly called SEAFAC — measures sounds generated by vessels.
The decision to increase testing in the Behm Canal comes after years of research and consulting with federal agencies such as the National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as well as public meetings in affected areas, including 2012 and 2014 public meetings in Ketchikan.
Behm Canal, which rings Revillagigedo Island, often hosts whales, dolphins, porpoise, sea lions, seals, otters, fish and seabirds. Navy officials say the effects of more training on wildlife and the fishing industry should be minimal.
Copies of the Navy’s record of decision and the final environmental impact statement are available at the Ketchikan Public Library and online.
