New Jersey Senate Republicans hosted an independent hearing today where the surge of whale and dolphin deaths along the Jersey Shore and potential links to wind farms were discussed.

The panel was chaired by Senator Anthony M. Bucco (R-25) and included Senator Vince Polistina (R-2), Senator Michael Testa (R-1), and Senator Declan O’Scanlon (R-13).

“We held a very informative hearing this morning on whales and wind farms,” Bucco said after the hearing. “It’s clear from the testimony we received that the wind farm projects were rushed, there’s data demonstrating real harm to marine life, and shore towns and fisheries will face serious economic impacts that have been completely ignored. We believe it makes a lot of sense to put a pause on these projects to investigate the legitimate concerns that were raised today in greater depth.”

Participating witnesses in the virtual hearing included:

• Cindy Zipf – Clean Ocean Action
• Trisha DeVoe – Marine Biologist
• Mike Dean – Community Activist
• Paul Kanitra – Mayor, Point Pleasant Beach
• Craig Rucker – Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT)
• Dr. Bob Stern – Save LBI
• Meghan Lapp – Seafreeze LTD (commercial fishing)
• Jim Hutchinson – Editor, The Fisherman Magazine (recreational fishing)

The hearing was livestreamed on Facebook Live. An archived copy of the video has also been shared on YouTube.