Hanging over the people of Okinawa for many years has been the looming plan to construct a huge new US airbase, threatening the marine ecosystem off the shores of the beautiful bay of Henoko and completely filling in Oura Bay, part of Henoko Bay.
Henoko-Oura Bay is home to the critically endangered dugong, the extremely rare sea-going cousin of the manatee, as well as to fragile coral reefs and dolphins.
The International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute has joined many Japanese and American environmental organizations in protesting the building of the airbase and the impacts it will have on the dugongs, dolphins, and their marine habitat.
The proposed airbase, already under construction, would replace the existing Marine Corps airbase at Futenma in Okinawa. Despite widespread opposition from the people of Okinawa and their governor, the government of Japan (which treats Okinawa as an outlier), with the strong support of the US Department of Defense, prefers to force the new base on Okinawa.
Environmental impacts would be greatly reduced by retaining the old base or moving the new base to a less sensitive location. In a February 2019 referendum, more than 70% of Okinawan voters opposed building the US airbase.
On Monday, February 3rd, the IMMP team and our supporters joined Japanese and US activists for a rally in front of the San Francisco courthouse, where a panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard testimony from environmentalists and the Defense Dept. about one of the lawsuits pending against the project.
The case, “Center for Biological Diversity v Esper”, was brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, Turtle Island Restoration Network, Japan Environmental Lawyers for Future, Save the Dugong Foundation and several Japanese individuals. The lawsuit contends the US Department of Defense has failed to adequately consider the impacts on the dugong, which is listed as a cultural treasure by the Japanese government. Other lawsuits are pending on related issues.
Historically, national defense concerns, unfortunately, take priority over environmental concerns.
IMMP and the environmental plaintiffs, in this case, believe that the US Department of Defense should back off from the currently proposed Henoko-Oura Bay airbase construction and integrate environmental thinking into their definition of “national defense.” What good is defending Americans if the world environment suffers collapse because of US defense measures?
Please consider donating to support the International Marine Mammal Project’s ongoing campaigns to protect whales, dolphins, and their ocean habitat. Donations are tax-deductible. Thank you for your support!
