The U.S.'s ocean regulator plans to make changes to a longstanding rule designed to protect endangered right whales, in an apparent shipping-friendly move, reports The Associated Press. The announcement has prompted criticism from environmental groups who cite the recent death of one of the whales, found near a remote barrier island off Virginia’s eastern shore. She was three years old, the second dead right whale in less than two weeks, according to Cape Cod Times.

Currently, the rules require large ships to slow down at certain times to avoid collisions, which are a leading cause of death for the giant North Atlantic right whales that live off the U.S. East Coast, and currently number less than 400.

At present, the website of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration continues to state: “Most vessels 65 feet or longer must travel at 10 knots or less in certain locations (called Seasonal Management Areas) along the U.S. East Coast at certain times of the year... Vessels of all sizes can strike a whale, so we encourage vessels less than 65 feet long to help protect right whales by slowing to 10 knots or less within these areas as well.”

But NOAA said in a statement to The Associated Press on February 12 that it plans to soon announce proposed new rules designed to “modernize” the whale protections. The proposal will be a “deregulatory-focused action” that will seek to “reduce unnecessary regulatory and economic burdens while ensuring responsible conservation practices for endangered North Atlantic right whales,” the statement said.

A notice of rulemaking about the right whale rules is listed on the U.S. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs website, but it does not include any details about the proposal. NOAA said more information about the rules was forthcoming and that the agency was focused on “implementing new technologies, engineering approaches, and other advanced tools” to protect the whales.

Some shipping businesses and other marine industries have long pushed back at vessel speed rules. The National Marine Manufacturers Association has described speed restrictions as “archaic” and advocated for solutions that rely on technology.

According to the International Whaling Commission, right whales were one of the first species of whale to be hunted, starting as early as the 11^th century.  They were considered the "right" whales to hunt, because they were slow, occur close to shore, float when dead, and yield large quantities of oil and baleen.  The species was hunted to the brink of extinction almost everywhere it occurred until it was protected under the first International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling in the 1930’s.