The state of Maryland joined with eight other states to take legal action against the federal government after the Trump administration moved to allow seismic testing in the Atlantic Ocean.

Gov. Larry Hogan announced Thursday that he authorized the state to file a lawsuit against the federal government. The lawsuit involves the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, which is represented by Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh.

"We have made incredible progress in improving our air and water quality standards, and we are not going to let misguided policies from the federal government jeopardize our hard work,” Hogan said in a release. “Maryland will continue to fight against this sort of federal government overreach that threatens our natural resources and coastal communities.”

Seismic testing works by using airguns to blast compressed air into the ocean. The air travels through the water and into the seabed, and it allows experts to learn about potential oil and gas deposits buried deep in a process known as a seismic survey.

More:Seismic blasting: Maryland officials overwhelming against airgun permits

More:Farmers cheer Trump water rollback as environmentalists worry about Chesapeake Bay impact

The blasts are loud, often producing sounds at and above 140 decibels — a level of sound that comes somewhere in between a gunshot and an airplane taking off. That sound can be dangerous for animals, as many creatures that live underwater (such as dolphins and whales) communicate through sound.

A seismic survey is considered to be the first step to offshore drilling. Hogan previously directed Frosh to pursue "any viable legal claims, actions or suits" necessary to prevent drilling off Maryland's coast in a January letter.

“While the administration continues to place the interests of the fossil fuel industry ahead of our precious natural resources, attorneys general up and down the Atlantic coast will continue to fight these and other efforts to open the waters off our shores to drilling for oil and gas," Frosh said in a news release.

The National Marine Fisheries Service, the agency that in November granted permits to five companies to begin seismic testing, is at the center of the lawsuit. The lawsuit says the NMFS violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act when granting those permits, which were denied during the Obama administration.

More:Maryland clean energy bill could triple offshore wind investment

More:Sea level rise projections dire: 'We’re on the worst-case pathway'

The lawsuit was filed in South Carolina by a group of non-governmental organizations. The nine attorneys general are moving to intervene on the side of those organizations and file their own complaints on the behalf of their respective states. Delaware and Virginia are also involved in the lawsuit.

Diane Hoskins, campaign director of offshore drilling for Oceana, one of the involved groups, said in November that the move would effectively turn beach towns into oil towns by damaging ecosystems and, by extension, tourism.

Seismic industry groups argue that the airgun surveys, although complex, are nothing new, and won't be done in a way that hurts marine life.

Environmental and marine activists, however, overwhelmingly disagree.

"Today’s announcement sends a clear message to President Trump that coastal states are united against harmful seismic airgun blasting for offshore drilling," Hoskins said in a Thursday release. "These attorneys general are standing up for their states, their way of life and their coastal economies. Putting our oceans, marine life and coastal economies at risk for dirty and dangerous offshore drilling is wrong, and we are not backing down."

Reach reporter Hayley Harding via email at hharding@delmarvanow.com or on Twitter @Hayley__Harding.

More:Delaware's involvement in offshore wind energy remains uncertain

More:WATCH: Chincoteague against offshore drilling