US plans seismic testing of sea floor

The US government is planning to use sound blasting to conduct research on the ocean floor along most of the East Coast, using technology similar to that which led to a court battle by environmentalists in New Jersey. The US Geological Survey plans to map the outer limits of the continental shelf and study underwater landslides that would help predict where and when tsunamis might occur. But environmentalists say it could cause the same type of marine life damage they fought unsuccessfully to prevent this month off New Jersey, according to a news agency.