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, a federal appeals court ruled.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday night rejected the Navy's appeal of restrictions that banned high-powered sonar within 12 nautical miles of the coast and set other limits that could affect Navy training exercises 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 appellate judges let stand most of a lower court injunction that set the limits, but altered two restrictions that the Navy argued could harm the readiness of its ships for combat.
Conservation groups that had sued to block the Navy's use of high-powered sonar said the decision was a victory for their side.
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