Puget Sounds will soon have dolphins and sea lions protecting and patrolling it's submarines from terrorist attacks. The U.S. Navy is training them and this method is already being used in other parts of the world. Supposedly, dolphins and sea lions are more capable of detecting a lone diver than the most advanced technology. Dolphins can outswim any human and the sea lions have good directional hearing. So while this seems like a good idea at first, many people are apposed to it for various reasons.
Washington State animal lovers and environmentalists are worried that the dolphins will suffer in the cold waters of the Puget Sound and that the local environment will suffer from the loss of these animals. Public hearings are being held in Seattle and in towns along the Puget Sound to decide whether or not this should be allowed. Although, the dolphins could really contribute a lot to this area, protesters say that dolphins just don't belong in the northern Pacific waters. The dolphins are accostumed to waters that are 10 degrees warmer than the waters in the Puget Sound. The navy argues back that the dolphins in the cold water of Alaska and Norway have suffered no ill effects.
Although it would be really cool to have dolphins protecting and patrolling against terrorists, dolphins are not made to do this for us. Its not in there natural state. By doing this who knows how far we will go in the future with using animals for the common good of humans.
1 comment:
This is a really cool discovery! Although I would not want to endanger the lives of dolphins or sea lions, their ability to potentially save lives could be very important in the future.
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