The interplay between the U.S. military and the environment is fascinating. On land, many military policies have actually been beneficial to the environment — the military has been a good steward of many endangered habitats.

Out at sea, the reality is not quite as good. The sonar systems employed by the Navy are increasingly implicated as a source of major damage to marine mammals from whales to dolphins, as this new NRDC piece outlines. This issue will continue to heat up and should be watched closely.