Federal Appeals Court Rejects Navy Sonar-Use Rules - ABC News : "A federal appeals court ruled Friday that the U.S. Navy was wrongly allowed to use sonar that could harm whales and other marine life. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court decision upholding approval granted in 2012 for the Navy to use low-frequency sonar for training, testing and routine operations. The five-year approval covered peacetime operations in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans and the Mediterranean Sea. The appellate panel sent the matter back to the lower court for further proceedings. A message seeking comment from representatives of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Honolulu was not immediately returned. Sonar, used to detect submarines, can injure whales, seals, dolphins and walruses and disrupt their feeding and mating. " 'via Blog this'