Sen. Graham blasts proposal to save rare whales. They face extinction off SC coast.

As the federal government considers a plan to protect critically endangered right whales, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham is pushing back, saying it’s an unnecessary imposition on recreational boaters and the port of Charleston.

The South Carolina Republican, who first opposed the proposal last year, met with harbor pilots Thursday in Charleston to discuss the plan to make smaller boats slow down during certain times of the year to avoid collisions that could kill North Atlantic right whales.

After the meeting, he ripped the proposal as bureaucratic and unhelpful.

““This is the federal government out of control,’’ according to a statement Graham’s office issued Thursday afternoon. “You’re not helping the whale, you’re destroying the shipping industry. You’re putting humans at risk without helping the whale. You are destroying a way of life on the coast of South Carolina that we’ve enjoyed since we’ve been a state, for no good reason.”

The news release did not elaborate on how the plan would destroy the shipping industry or put humans at risk, but recreational boaters and fishermen have expressed concern that it could slow down fishing trips in the ocean. The proposed rules have generated criticism along the East Coast.

Supporters say tighter rules on boating are badly needed to save a species of whale that is threatened with extinction.

Only 350 North Atlantic right whales are known to exist in the world.

Collisions with boats and entanglement of whales in fishing gear are the greatest contributors to dwindling right whale populations, federal officials say. Populations are so precarious that, even a single fatal collision between a right whale and a boat, could hurt efforts to help the whales recover, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Because of the threat, the government requires slower speeds for vessels greater than 65 feet in areas along the South Atlantic coast during times of the year when whales frequent the region. The idea is to avoid collisions, or at least reduce the impact on whales if a collision does occur.

The new rules would extend to boats as small as 35 feet, including those used by recreational fishermen and harbor pilots, because federal officials say the existing regulations aren’t enough to save the whale populations. Smaller boats also can kill whales, according to the federal government.

The rules for smaller boats, similar to those for larger ones, would apply along the South Atlantic coast from next month through mid-spring. It also could trigger temporary speed limits at other times, if groups of whales are seen then, environmentalists said.

“Right whale abundance will continue to decline … unless human caused mortality is substantially reduced in the near term,’’ NOAA said in a federal register notice last year.

Right whales migrate annually up and down the East Coast, from Maine to Florida. They typically give birth off the coast of the Carolinas, Georgia and northern Florida during the fall and winter. Adults can weigh up to 140,000 pounds and reach 52 feet in length. If left undisturbed, they can live 70 years, according to NOAA.

Speed limits for smaller boats, unveiled last year by NOAA, have not been finalized because recreational boaters have complained loudly, said Kristen Monsell, a senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. How that will affect the agency’s final decision is unknown.

“I think it is in part due to the fact that it is getting lots of backlash from entities like the recreational boating community, senators and other folks in Congress,’’ she said. “But right whales don’t have time to wait.’’

Since NOAA has been slow to make a decision on speed limits for smaller boats, her organization recently petitioned the agency to put the rule in effect before the right-whale calving season begins next month.

“Speed limits are proven to reduce serious injuries and mortalities of right whales,’’ Monsell said. “They really can’t withstand more delays on protections, nor should they have to. We are incredibly lucky to share our oceans with these amazing whales.’’

The Carolinas, Georgia and north Florida are the only places where right whales are known to give birth and nurse their young. So when boats strike and kill mothers and calves, it has a greater impact on the overall right whale population than if a single male were struck.

Despite the call for greater regulation of boating during right whale calving season, Graham and other senators in south Atlantic states say the rule goes too far.

Graham and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., opposed the slower speed limit for smaller boats last year. This year, the Senate Appropriations Committee, with Graham’s support, also included language in a bill expressing concern about the rule. The statement said recreational boaters and fishermen were apparently not consulted on how the rule would affect them.

Graham said having smaller boats slow down to 10 knots or less in designated areas — about 11 miles per hour — could increase the time it takes for recreational boaters to get to their favorite fishing grounds.. A one-way, 100-mile boat trip that normally takes about three hours would increase to 10 hours, he said this week.

Graham’s news release said boats 35-65 feet have taken 5.1 million recreational fishing trips in the area since 2008. The release also said charter boat businesses could be hurt by the lower speeds. People spend about $15 million a year on offshore fishing trips, some of which might have to be canceled or cut back if the speed limit for smaller boats takes effect, the release said. The proposal also won’t work, he said.

Graham’s stance on the proposed right whale rules could help him win support from the recreational boating and business communities in a state with a major port and plenty of anglers who own boats. Graham, a supporter of former President Donald Trump, has been booed at some political events, and a recent Winthrop University poll shows only 30 percent of South Carolina voters say they approve of Graham’s performance.

Graham said he favors trying to save whales through technology that may be able to locate them so that boats and ships won’t strike the animals.

“There’s plenty of technology available that we can use to monitor whales without putting harbor pilots’ lives at risk and destroying the sport fishing industry,’’ he said in the news release.