Limits Upheld on Sonar Use in Navy Tests

A federal appeals court has ruled that the Navy must abide by limits on its sonar training off the Southern California coast because the exercises could harm dozens of species of whales and dolphins.

In a decision released on Friday night, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected most of the Navy’s appeal of a ruling that banned high-powered sonar within 12 miles of the coast and set other limits that could affect Navy training exercises scheduled to begin this month.

Also on Friday, a federal judge in Hawaii issued a similar ban for that state’s coastline.

In the California case, the three-member appellate panel let stand most of a lower court injunction that set the limits. But it did change two restrictions that the Navy argued could harm the readiness of its ships for potential combat duty.

Conservation groups that had sued to block use of the sonar welcomed the decision...