Obama administration designates 2 new marine sanctuaries

The United States is moving to protect waters of historic and national importance by initiating the creation of the first new National Marine Sanctuaries since 2001, one in the State of Maryland and the other in the Great Lakes.

The Lake Michigan National Marine Sanctuary will be a bit hard to get to.

It encompasses a 14-square mile area of the tidal Potomac River next to Charles County, home to almost 200 vessels, a few from the Revolutionary War.

“When Americans are empowered with the ability to celebrate, protect and ensure the future of ocean places of significance to them, they join in”, said Jason Patlis, President and CEO, NMSF.

“Our economies, our livelihoods, and our food all depend on our oceans”, President Obama said in a video message shown at the conference, the AP reported.

The new marine zone will have 631,368 square kilometers and will be the third largest “fully protected” ocean area in the world.

5, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced it will begin the designation process for the proposed Lake Michigan National Marine Sanctuary, located along the coastline of Two Rivers, Manitowoc, Sheboygan and Port Washington.

Last year, Obama added more than 400,000 miles to protected waters under the United States’ control, including making the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument the largest marine protected area in the world.

The America would also launch Sea Scout which would prosecute illegal or unregulated fishing networks around the world. This would not only help protect the marine life, but also curb the illegal exploitation of marine species especially the fishes.

Easter Island’s waters are a spawning ground for tuna, shark, marlin and swordfish and a food source for the Rapa Nui people of the island, who were involved in designing the reserve.

“The overfishing of our oceans is largely the result of illegal fishing plus discarded fish”, said Juan Vilata, a conservationist at the environmental group WWF Chile, on the sidelines of a major conference on saving the world’s oceans.

“We also have plans for yet another significant (park) in the Atlantic, and we’re working with senators engaged in that particular area to make that happen”, said Secretary of State John Kerry.

The sensor will be used in Indonesia, the Philippines and three other countries starting next year, according to the White House.

She called the plan “Chile’s contribution to the ocean, so that our children and grandchildren may enjoy what we are doing here”.

“The question isn’t whether the ocean matters, and it isn’t whether the ocean is at risk”, said Kerry at the conference on Monday.

Monday’s conference in Valparaiso brings together nations to help combat ocean pollution caused by discarded plastics and the increasing levels of ocean acidification, which has damaged coral reefs and shellfish populations.