Noise pollution from shipping, sonar, and industrial activity causes significant welfare problems for whales, dolphins, and porpoises. These impacts range from communication disruption to fatal strandings.
Cetaceans rely on sound for all essential life functions including finding food, communicating, and navigating. Noise pollution from human activities disrupts these abilities, causing individual welfare impacts ranging from chronic stress to acute acoustic trauma. Reducing shipping noise and restricting sonar in key habitat areas would provide significant welfare benefits.