California IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Use of Dolphins by Navy Protested

Environmentalists are protesting a Navy exercise using dolphins to find underwater equipment in San Francisco Bay. About a dozen dolphins have been in the bay for just over a week, said a Navy spokesman, for “underwater surveillance for object detection, location, marking and recovery purposes.” Greenpeace spokesman Bill Walker said, “These peaceful animals have a right not to be exploited.” Officials at the Navy’s Marine Mammal Program in San Diego said dolphins are more efficient than humans in aquatic activities and are used only as scouts to mark locations.