A Bedford organization is using nearly $10M in funding from the Biden-Harris administration to research technology to safeguard the North Atlantic right whale.
MITRE Corp. will partner with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Fisheries division to evaluate what works to prevent vessel strikes and entanglements in fishing gear, two of the main causes of death for the critically endangered whales. The nonprofit will look into the growing industries of ropeless fishing gear and detection tools.
“It’s really about understanding what's out there today. If we identify gaps, there may be opportunities down the line to develop new technologies,” said Nick Rotker, chief BlueTech strategist at MITRE.
MITRE was founded in 1958 as a military think tank, but the nonprofit has since expanded to a variety of projects across the aerospace, artificial intelligence, health and cybersecurity fields, among others.
There are an estimated 360 North Atlantic right whales off the East Coast. Right whale researchers are aiming to stabilize the population and prevent extinction of the species.
A major win, said Rotker, would be becoming aware of where the whales are at any given time, so ships and fishermen can avoid them.
“You are essentially trying to find a needle in a haystack,” Rotker said. One goal of the partnership will be finding ways to make the different technologies work together.
“In terms of vessel strikes, there is no one solution that’s going to solve this problem,” Rotker said.
The partnership began in late November and will be a multi-year effort. In July, MITRE received funding from the Healey-Driscoll administration to build out its BlueTech lab in Bedford and to elevate the Bay State's position as a leader in the ocean science, marine robotics, clean energy and other marine industries.
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