The President made his announcement at the 3 annual Our Ocean Conference, hosted by Secretary Kerry and the U.S. State Department, exactly three weeks after he created the world’s largest protected area by expanding Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument to 373 million acres.
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The new monument, called The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts, will be the first Atlantic Marine National Monument, covering a 4913 square mile area 150 miles off the coast of Cape Cod.
“Dangerous changes in our climate, caused mainly by human activity; dead zones in our ocean, caused mainly by pollution that we create here on land; unsustainable fishing practices; unprotected marine areas, in which rare species and entire ecosystems are at risk – all those things are happening now”, the United States president said. But many in the fishing industry worry Obama’s actions will make it harder for them to earn a living.
The plans impose a permanent ban on commercial fishing in an additional one million square kilometres (386,100 square miles) of ocean, according to Britain’s Foreign Office.
National Marine Manufacturers Association president Thom Dammrich said the decision “demonstrates a consistent commitment by the administration to recognize the importance of recreational activities, including recreational boating and fishing, within a marine monument”.
“I saw it. It was right there, evidence of the incredible power of nature to rebuild itself, if we’re not consistently trying to tear it down”, Obama said.
Altogether, countries at the conference announced new sanctuaries covering almost 1.19 million sq km of ocean, an area the size of South Africa.
“What’s threatening any part of the ocean where there may be natural resources are oil and mineral exploration, man’s inevitable effort to develop and exploit resources under the sea”, he told Vice News in an interview, suggesting that rapidly developing deep sea mining technology might one day pose a threat to US coastal waters.
Affected fishermen formed the Southern Georges Bank Fishing Coalition on Wednesday to oppose the monument.
“It’s going to be increasingly important as climate change, its impacts increase”, Sewell says. “Next, we hope he’ll protect the best-known canyon in America – the Grand Canyon – from the dangers of toxic mining”. This most recent addition in the Atlantic has largely angered members of the fishing industry who fear financial repercussions. “With very large MPAs, we may hit the 10 percent target in another 10 years”, he said.
Williams, owner of the Atlantic Red Crab Company in New Bedford, doesn’t know what his next steps will be.
Obama’s creation of the national marine monument will be the 27th time he has created or expanded a national monument.
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“The designation of the New England Coral Canyon and Seamounts will allow us to continue to study this vulnerable and otherworldly part of our ocean and ultimately educate our visitors with the goal of creating ocean stewards for generations to come”, Stephen M. Coan, president and CEO of Mystic Aquarium, s aid last month. “And we’re doing it in a way that respects the fishing industry’s unique role in New England’s history and economy”.
