<p>High-powered seismic air guns could soon be vastly increasing the submarine noise levels off the Atlantic coast of the United States, potentially harming marine life. The air guns are used to create powerful sound waves that move through the water column and into the sea floor where they become seismic waves that help illuminate geological structures that could contain petroleum reservoirs.</p><p>Last week the Obama administration released an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for oil and gas exploration on the East Coast that could open the door to permits being for seismic air gun surveys from Florida to New Jersey just months from now.</p><p>The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) jumped on the EIS, calling it "a capitulation to the forces of drill-baby-drill."</p><p>"Airgun exploration is not only a gateway drug to offshore drilling but, as the scientific community has recognized, a major assault on the oceans in itself," wrote NRDC's Michael Jasny just hours after the EIS was released.</p><p><a href="http://news.discovery.com/animals/whales-dolphins/atlantic-ocean-noise-about-to-get-noisier-140307.htm">Keep reading...</a></p>