WASHINGTON (CNN) – President Barack Obama designated an undersea range of canyons and peaks off the US Eastern seaboard as the country’s first Atlantic marine national monument on Thursday.
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Recreational fishing will be allowed in the new Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument off the MA coast – a big win for the recreational fishing and boating industries as an important marine resource is preserved without public restriction, officials said Thursday morning.
“The canyons and seamounts area off New England’s coast is one of America’s most unique ocean places”, said Margie Alt, executive director of Environment America, who joined with a broad coalition of organizations and scientists to galvanize support for the new monument.
This designation comes just weeks after the world’s largest marine protected area was created outside Hawaii – also by presidential decree through the Antiquities Act.
Obama said conservation efforts and obligations to combat climate change go hand in hand, because marine areas have many stressors: overfishing, ship traffic and pollution that ranges from visible plastic to invisible carbon.
The president called for optimism in fighting climate change and other environmental threats, recalling efforts to save the ozone layer and end acid rain as examples of seemingly impossible environmental tasks that were successful. It is home to such protected species as the sperm, fin and sei whales, and Kemp’s ridley turtles, the White House said.
Captain John Brewer, a fisherman who lands red crab at the port of New Bedford, Conn, said there is ample evidence that the industry already contributes to sustainable long-term management.
During his remarks Thursday, Obama recalled his own childhood in Hawaii, saying it instilled a humble respect for the sea.
“We anticipate the offshore lobster industry will be affected to the tune of about $10 million per year”, Vanasse told NPR. Scientific expeditions to this region have yielded new discoveries including species of coral found nowhere else on Earth and other rare fish and invertebrates.
According to the paper, President Obama has designated more acreage than any previous president for national monuments at 553 million acres.
Recreational fishing will still be permitted within the monument’s boundaries.
‘We can not truly protect our planet without protecting our oceans, ‘ Obama said.
White House officials said the administration listened to the concerns of the industry and pointed out that the monument is smaller than originally proposed and contains a transition period for companies like the one Williams runs. The move will also prohibit any underwater drilling and mining.
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But Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of CT said the monument “will protect countless species and habitats from irreversible damage, advance key research, and support critical jobs that depend on healthy oceans”.
