Antiquities Act Archives - Page 15 of 17

SALEM NEWS: Cashes Ledge decision a victory for open government

March 29, 2016 — The decision by the Obama administration to pass on a proposal to make a large swath of the Gulf of Maine a national monument is not only a victory for fishermen. It’s also a win for those who favor open government.

News came late last week that the administration would not, in fact, use the federal Antiquities Act to make the the area around Cashes Ledge a permanent “maritime national monument” by executive decree.

Such status is set aside for for areas of outstanding scientific, cultural, conservation and aesthetic value. President George W. Bush established four and Obama expanded one, the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, according to the Associated Press.

Cashes Ledge, about 80 miles off the coast of Cape Ann, provides a habitat to sharks, dolphins and sea turtles and migrating, endangered North Atlantic right whales.

The area, more than 520 square nautical miles, is certainly worth protecting. However, there are already rules in place doing just that. The area is currently off limits to fishing, and there are no plans for that to change.

Read the rest of the column at The Salem News

Why Gulf of Maine waters won’t be a national monument

March 28, 2016 — Despite substantial pressure from environmental groups, Obama administration officials this week said the president won’t declare a national monument in a distinct portion of the Gulf of Maine that features glacier-sculpted mountain ranges and billowy kelp forests.

Over the past year, environmental advocates have lobbied the administration to designate an area known as Cashes Ledge as a national monument, a decision that would have permanently banned fishing around the submerged mountain range.

The ecosystem, about 80 miles off the coast of Gloucester, is home to an abundant array of life, from multicolored anemones to massive cod. Fishermen have opposed the designation and said they were relieved when they learned about the decision in meetings this week with officials with the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

Read the full story at The Boston Globe

Rep. Tom MacArthur: Stop Spending Money on Designating Marine Monuments

March 22, 2016 — (Saving Seafood) —Rep. Tom MacArthur (NJ-03) is calling on Congress to prohibit the use of any funds to be used for designating national marine monuments, in a letter sent today to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science.

Rep. MacArthur writes that the current process of declaring national marine monuments relies on a century-old law, the 1906 Antiquities Act, that gives the Executive the authority to declare monuments by fiat, without any consultation. According to the letter, this process is undemocratic, and ignores the valid economic concerns of fishing communities, many of whom have already taken steps of their own initiative to maintain the ecological conditions of the areas in which they make their living.

“The diversity of interests encompassed at the shore necessitates a balanced democratic and scientific approach to our conservation and management that involves all of the relevant stakeholders,” writes Rep. MacArthur

Rep. MacArthur also states in his letter that the Antiquities Act provides no incentive for government officials to consult with state and local officials who know these resources best, which he contends is essential for sound resource management.

“To achieve management balance and buy-in from affected stakeholders and to adequately protect those areas that are most unique, we must not ignore the technical expertise of the fishing community and local and state wildlife officials and their willingness to apply sound conservation ethics to the resources they are privileged to access and proud to bring to the consumer,” he writes.

See Rep. MacArthur’s full letter here.

House Panel Supports Efforts to Safeguard Atlantic Coast Fisheries Access, Protect Against Obama Administration’s Potential Unilateral Fisheries Closures

December 7, 2015 — RIVERHEAD, N.Y. – The following was released by the House Committee on Natural Resources:

Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources held an oversight field hearing in Riverhead, NY on public access to Atlantic fisheries and the impact and implementation of federal decision-making on the commercial and recreational fishing industry and local economies. The panel received testimony from fisheries stakeholders and a representative from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

One focal point of the hearing was the possible designation by the Obama Administration of National Marine Monuments along the Atlantic Coast using the Antiquities Act, which would deny public input and usurp established habitat and fisheries management plans. Commercial and recreational fisheries stakeholders before the panel supported Committee efforts to ensure public input in future potential designations.

“I know firsthand what happens when a President abuses the Antiquities Act against the wishes of local residents as a means of shutting off multiple uses of lands and waters. There’s a reason we have laws on the books to ensure federal management decisions are informed by experts at the regional level, in full consultation with states and local users – not under the cover of darkness,” Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) said.

“Fishing and the maritime economy have been a key part of the economy, culture, and history of Long Island for centuries. Now more than ever our fisheries and the dedicated men and women who work in this important industry face challenges that must be addressed,” stated Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) during opening statements. “And now more than ever we must strike the right balance between a strong fishing economy and protecting our critical natural resources. Fairness, transparency, and giving our fishermen and boaters a seat at the table is why we are here today.”

“Designating marine monuments is a relatively new practice that only began in 2006, with a monument designation larger than all of America’s National Parks combined, approximately the size of Germany,” Rep. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ) said during the hearing. “I find it particularly troubling that there is no concern given to local fish and wildlife commissioners or the state and local elected officials when sites are considered. There are serious implications to this designation and local communities should be involved in these designations, rather than a decree from Washington.”

In recent months, Members of Congress on both sides of the political aisle have voiced opposition to the potential Marine Monument designations and called upon the Obama Administration to seek local input on any potential actions.

Earlier this year, the House passed H.R. 1335, a bill to reauthorize and modernize the Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), the primary federal law that governs federal fisheries management. This bill makes key reforms to reflect scientific advancements and regional needs, and includes provisions to ensure that state and local interests are protected from future Marine Monuments designated under the Antiquities Act.

Click here to view witness testimony. Video footage of the hearing will be available here later today.

Read the release here

Enviros Push for “National Monuments” Off Northeast Coast that Could Ban Recreational Fishing

November, 2015 — A coalition of environmental groups including the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Conservation Law Foundation, and the National Resources Defense Council, is pushing hard to create a half-dozen “marine national monuments” in the Atlantic Ocean that would prohibit commercial fishing and could ban recreational fishing as well.

The coalition is encouraging President Obama to use his authority to designate the monuments through the Antiquities Act of 1906, which was created to “protect the objects of historic and scientific interest” and is supposed to be limited to “the smallest area compatible with proper care and management of the objects to be protected.” Through the Act, a president can unilaterally create these areas without any public or congressional oversight or input. A number of presidents have exercised this privilege in the past, yet most monuments have been designated on land or in the Western Pacific Ocean.

At the time of this writing the areas under consideration are not completely clear, but appear to include at least three canyons – Lydonia, Gilbert, and Oceanographer – along with four seamounts to the south, as well as Cashes Ledge some 50 miles offshore in the Gulf of Maine. Other canyons and seamounts are also reportedly under consideration.

It is clear to many of us, however, that the coalition’s intent in creating these monuments has little to do with historical or cultural preservation. As Maine’s Gov. Paul LePage put it, the monuments designations “would serve only one purpose – excluding commercial fishing from certain segments of the ocean.”

The recreational sector, however, needs to be very careful – and skeptical as well. At least one attorney for the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) has suggested that recreational fishing would likely be allowed in the monuments, in order to garner support from sport fishermen, and indicated that it would be a real “win” for the recreational sector if just the commercials were prohibited in these areas.

But the rec sector isn’t taking the bait. “Just because a couple of environmental groups claim they wouldn’t oppose recreational fishing in the monuments doesn’t mean that sport fishing would be allowed once the final regulations are drafted in D.C.,” explained Frank Blount, chairman of the New England Fishery Management Council’s (NEFMC) Groundfish Committee and a party boat fleet owner in RI. “There’s no way to predict what the language in any monument designation will entail. We need to oppose the whole idea, right from the get-go.”

One of the biggest problems with the Antiquities Act of 1906 is that it strips away the open, democratic processes that protect these areas yet can allow sustainable and appropriate fishing activity. The open federal Fishery Management Council system is the vehicle by which this is best accomplished, and in fact the NEFMC has already implemented strong protections for Cashes Ledge, where most commercial fishing is already now prohibited. And in June, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council voted to protect 38,000 square miles of marine habitat in order to protect deep-sea corals.

A marine monuments designation, in contrast, would nullify these existing management actions, and deny the public any input into what new restrictions might, or should, be enacted. “Instead, it all becomes purely political,” says Jim Donofrio, the RFA’s Executive Director. “Whoever has the most influence on the administration and the president will get what they want in the way of restrictions in these areas. This is no way to manage our publicly-owned marine resources. We already have a transparent process via the Magnuson-Stevens Act. It’s certainly not perfect, to be sure, but it at least allows for public participation.”

Read the full story at Making Waves, the official publication of the Recreational Fishing Alliance

Fishing industry, environmental groups spar over protected areas in Atlantic waters

November 21, 2015 — NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — A growing effort to permanently protect deep-sea canyons, mountains and ledges in waters off New England has the local fishing industry on edge.

“It would be a big hit for the company,” Jon Williams, president of Atlantic Red Crab Co. on Herman Melville Boulevard, said about the potential for the first marine protected areas on the Eastern seaboard. “We’re going to lose an area that we fish regularly, and we’re going to lose it forever.”

There’s a big “if” behind Williams’ statement. Environmental groups and marine scientists have intensified their calls in recent months for President Barack Obama to declare “national monument” status for three ocean areas, which would permanently protect them from an array of commercial and industrial uses. No decision has been reached, though, and the timetable for action could extend over Obama’s last year in office.

That could make 2016 a nervous year for fishing industry leaders and advocates in New Bedford and elsewhere on the New England coast.

“I am strongly opposed to the national monument,” Stephanie Rafael-DeMello, co-owner of Bela Flor Seafood Brokerage Co. and manager of Northeast Fishery Sector 9, said in an email. “I believe it takes away from the public, science-driven process that goes into such considerations.”

After a flurry of activity this fall, the issue is stirring broad debate about how to balance preservation of marine life, ocean health and sustainable fisheries with potential oil and gas exploration, unsustainable fisheries, mineral mining, fishing-reliant regional economies and more.

Also at issue is how the protected national monument areas could be established. Backers of the effort are urging Obama to use the Antiquities Act, which dates to 1906 and allows the president to act unilaterally to preserve endangered areas. People opposing or questioning the monument effort, though, say use of that act could circumvent public input.

“The problem is it doesn’t use the normal process, which is the New England Fishery Management Council, to open or close (ocean) areas,” said Ed Anthes-Washburn, executive director of the Harbor Development Commission.

Mayor Jon Mitchell expressed similar concerns.

“National monuments are declared by the White House without the same kind of vetting that NOAA applies to new regulations,” Mitchell said last week. “We’ve been making the case that the federal government needs to put the brakes on the declaration of a national monument over an area that has extensive sea canyons and sea mountains, which is a place that’s fished primarily for ocean crabs.”

Priscilla Brooks, vice president and director of ocean conservation for the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), a Boston environmental advocacy group, said about 800,000 square miles in the Pacific Ocean already have been protected as marine national monuments.

Obama established three of those Pacific monuments by presidential proclamation in January 2009, and a fourth was established in 2006, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

“We don’t have a single mile in the Atlantic. Not one,” Brooks said. “We think it’s time.”

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard – Times

BOSTON HERALD: Drowning in regulations

November 6, 2015 — President Obama is poised to designate two large areas off the New England coast as national marine “monuments,” to the delight of conservationists who seem much more interested in protecting the ocean than they are in protecting people.

Gov. Charlie Baker has written to President Obama to express concern about the impact on the region’s fishermen if the federal government turns part of the New England coastline into a sort of undersea museum — one that only scientists are likely ever to lay eyes on. Baker in his letter raises reasonable concerns about the process — or lack thereof — that led to this point.

Yes, Obama has the authority to take this step under the Antiquities Act (and has done so for other areas in the Pacific, as did President George W. Bush). But Baker notes there has been little public input into the decision to designate areas known as Cashes Ledge and the New England Canyons and Seamounts as national monuments, making them off limits to commercial fishing and such activities as oil or gas exploration or extraction — permanently.

Read the full editorial at the Boston Herald

Mass. gov. Baker to Obama: Monument plan contrary to regional ocean planning

November 5, 2015 — Gov. Charlie Baker today directly addressed his concerns to President Obama about the potential designation of one or more National Marine Monuments off the coast of New England, saying the process has lacked stakeholder involvement and threatens to undermine existing fishery management systems.

“While the protection of critical marine habitats is a goal shared by many — including my Administration — significant questions and concerns have been raised regarding this possible designation,” Baker wrote in a letter to Obama, a copy of which was obtained by the Gloucester Daily Times. “I wish to convey my Administration’s apprehension as to both the process being implemented and the effects of such a unilateral declaration.”

The Obama administration, under significant pressure by environmental groups, is considering using the Antiquities Act to unilaterally designate areas of deep-sea canyons and seamounts — and possibly an area on Cashes Ledge — as National Marine Monuments, thus closing them off to commercial and other recreational uses. Cashes Ledge is about 80 miles east of Gloucester.

“My Administration has been unable to determine how these areas were identified and selected,” Baker wrote to Obama. “NOAA held a single public meeting in Providence, Rhode Island, and I believe that this falls far short of any meaningful stakeholder process.”

By contrast, Baker reminded the president, Massachusetts is an active participant in two regional ocean management systems — the New England Fishery Management Council and the Northeast Regional Planning Body — that are “stakeholder-based, informed by rigorous science and provide for robust debate.”

He pointed out that the NEFMC approved a marine habitat plan in April that “continues long-standing protections for a large area covering Cashes Ledge and extending many miles beyond” and that the council is working on extending similar protections to the New England Canyons through the Deep-Sea Coral Amendment.

Read the full story at Gloucester Daily Times

JON WILLIAMS: Not So Fast On Atlantic Marine Monument

WASHINGTON — November 4, 2015 — The following is an excerpt from an opinion piece written by Jon Williams, President of the Atlantic Red Crab Company of New Bedford, Massachusetts. It was originally published today by The Hill, a Washington-based publication covering Congressional policy and politics:

An ongoing campaign led by large, well-funded environmental organizations is urging President Obama to use the 1906 Antiquities Act to designate parts of the Atlantic Ocean-such as Cashes Ledge in the Gulf of Maine and the New England Canyons and Seamounts-as marine National Monuments. In September, I had the privilege of testifying before House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans about the aspect of this proposal that seeks to exclude historic fisheries from the designated area.

The Antiquities Act, originally enacted to give Teddy Roosevelt authority to protect vulnerable Native American archeological sites, allows the president to act quickly, unilaterally, and without Congressional oversight to preserve sites in danger of destruction. The act, while undoubtedly created in good faith, has been misused in the case of marine monuments to a frightening extent.

In my case, the red crab fishing business I’ve been operating for twenty years is active in some of the areas under the proposal. Not only has our fishery complied with every regulation, but we have expended significant resources and time to ensure the health of the resource we fish. We were the first U.S. Atlantic Coast fishery certified as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council, demonstrating we have minimal impact on the health of the species and its environment. Additionally, we are listed as “Ocean-Friendly” by the New England Aquarium Seafood Guide program.

Although these processes took years of effort and hundreds of thousands of dollars-a significant cost for a fishery of our size-it was important that we understood how the red crab fishery impacted the environment and demonstrated that our practices were indeed sustainable.

These efforts to both understand and minimize our impact on the environment have been so successful that after forty years of red crab fishing, our fishing grounds are described as “pristine” by the same environmental groups who seek the monument designation. If these habitats are still “pristine” after forty years of fishing, how can a serious argument be made that the area is in imminent danger and in need of immediate, unilateral protection by presidential fiat? By labeling our fishery as an imminent threat despite our ability to keep the area pristine, these environmental groups have both ignored the facts and devalued our successful efforts to operate a sustainable fishery.

In addition, those of us who have fished sustainably and responsibly in the area for decades have had our voices almost completely shut out of this process. A prime example was the September 15 “town hall” meeting held by NOAA in Providence, Rhode Island. Hastily arranged, many fishermen who would be affected by the proposals were not even aware that it took place. Those in attendance were provided no firm details on the scope of the proposal, preventing them from commenting substantively about something that could dramatically affect or even eliminate their livelihoods. There’s no guarantee that there will be any future opportunity for those affected to voice their concerns. The Antiquities Act does not require such input, and a designation could come at any time.

Read the full opinion piece at The Hill

NOAA encourages continued engagement on possible marine protected areas in New England

October 29, 2015 — The following was released by NOAA:

We would like to thank those of you who have taken the time to engage with NOAA on possible protections for some of the most ecologically important areas in the Atlantic Ocean, including several deep sea canyons and seamounts. We are committed to evaluating opportunities to protect important marine resources and habitat, while limiting impacts to those people and businesses whose livelihoods depend on these waters.

We received a lot of valuable input at the town hall meeting and have received many helpful comments and questions submitted electronically.

Many of you have requested more details and additional opportunities for public comment, and in the coming months we intend to release additional information about the area under consideration and solicit feedback.

In the meantime, if you have more thoughts that you would like to share, please continue to send them to: atlanticconservation@noaa.gov.