Trump has just made life more dangerous for one of the rarest whales on Earth

Add in danger of extinction to the list of things that the Trump administration does not give the ass of a rat.

On February 20, the Ocean Energy Management Office, an agency belonging to the Department of the Interior, announced that it was canceling a notice that recommended the ship operators in waters occupied by rice whales to restrict their speed to 10 knots (11.5 miles per hour) or less. He warningIt affects a large strip of the Gulf of Mexico, was implemented in 2023 to specifically protect the rice whale, a marine mammal in danger of extinction.

Although the exact number of rice whales in the Atlantic Ocean is unknown, the National and Atmospheric Administration of the Oceanic Administration is probably less than 100. That makes them one of the rarest whale species on the planet, one that is protected under the law of marine mammal protection. It is estimated that their numbers, already low, have fallen by 22% as a result of the Deepwater Horizon 2010 oil spill, according NOAA.

The notice also asked ship operators to publish trained visual observers to control the waters while in the protected area and remain at least 1,640 feet (500 meters) of the observed rice whales.

The notice was terminated, according to a statementTo fulfill a order Of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum called unleashing American energy, which aims to eliminate “impediments imposed on the development and use of the abundant energy and natural resources of our nation by the guradas regulations of the Biden administration.”

Environmental defenders have reacted with indignation. Michael Jasny, director of Marine Mammary Protection for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the recommendations were based on “common sense”, since he said he Tampa Bay Times. “The consequences of fatal error are too serious to contemplate,” he added. “And when you are talking about one of the most endangered whales of the planet, it is reasonable to reduce speed in that school zone.”

Not surprisingly, an American Petroleum Institute spokesman did not agree, telling the Times that the recommendations had placed “significant loads only in oil and gas producers on the time that did not take into account the traffic of vessels of other users operating in the region.”

In addition to being extremely rare, rice whales are one of the new species of known whales, in terms of formal recognition. Although first he saw in the Gulf of Mexico in the 1960s, it was believed that whales were part of a family known as Bryde’s whales. It was only in 2021 that genetic and morphological tests helped researchers determine that they were a different species.

Rice whales are large mammals, which measure up to 41 feet (12.5 meters) and weigh up to 60,000 pounds (27,215 kilograms). They also face numerous threats, largely due to industrial activity. Their numbers have decreased, at least in part, given to energy exploration and oil spills, remaining fisheries and oceanic noise created by humans, according to NOAA.

During the day, they remain in deeper waters to feed, but at night, they often rise to less than 50 feet (12 meters) from the surface. That makes them vulnerable to being beaten by ships. That has been shown to be fatal at least once. In 2009, a whale later determined to belong to the species was found floating In the port of Tampa. A necropsy determined that the death of women was caused by a collision with a boat.

The decision to terminate the notice occurs only weeks after the boss of Boem Elizabeth Klein was fired. Klein was appointed for the position of former President Joe Biden in 2023. The first weeks of the second Trump administration have been marked by a large -scale purge of public officials, as the president moves to install loyal to traditionally apolitical roles.

This, as they say, that is why we cannot have beautiful things.