Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Lt. Gov Polito: Monument Should ‘Support Fishing Industry’

August 28, 2017 — FALL RIVER, Mass. — Even though she was visiting the city for a ribbon cutting ceremony at a new UMASS Dartmouth facility, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts Karyn Polito couldn’t escape questions surrounding the fishing monument controversy.

The Seamount’s Marine Monument was designated as a national monument by former President Barack Obama in 2016 along with 27 others nationwide. The monument status placed on the roughly 4,900 square mile fishing area south of Cape Cod restricts any commercial activity within it, including fishing.

The designation of this area as a Monument Status is to prevent offshore drilling for oil off the coast of Massachusetts. This prevents any and all commercial activity in that designated area for any reason, leaving a considerable effect on the fishing industry in the south coast of the state.

Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke announced on Thursday that he completed his review of the 27 monuments. Zinke says that none of the 27 national monuments will be rescinded under the Trump administration, but suggested the possibility of changing the borders to a handful of monuments, none of which were specified.

Read the full story at WBSM

Monuments Review Spurs Call to Overhaul Antiquities Act

Interior Department does not recommend overturning any designations

August 28, 2017 — The Interior Department’s conclusion of a contentious review of national monuments might give Congress some impetus to revisit the Antiquities Act of 1906, which presidents of both parties have used to designate monuments through executive action.

House Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop on Thursday called for Congress to overhaul the Antiquities Act to place “reasonable limits” on the way presidents use the statute. Bishop’s statements came shortly before the Interior Department submitted recommendations to the White House after an executive-ordered review of monument designations made over the last two decades.

Bishop, a Utah Republican and forceful critic of federal control of public lands in the West, said in a call with reporters that the Obama administration had abused the statute that allows presidents to designate national monuments without congressional action. The Interior review, he said, was necessary because some of the designations were a result of abuse of the statute and did not allow for adequate input by local communities.

“If we don’t reform the Antiquities Act, we will have a replication of failures,” Bishop said. “If the procedure is flawed, the product is going to be flawed.”

Former President Barack Obama’s most contentious designation, the creation of the 1.3 million-acre Bears Ears monument, drew much opposition from Bishop and other Utah lawmakers, who lobbied the Trump administration for its reversal. Another of the more contentious ones is Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, which marked its first anniversary Thursday.

Read the full story at Roll Call

Fate of First Marine National Monument May Be Decided in Court

August 28, 2017 — The future of the first Atlantic marine national monument will likely be decided in court. A lawsuit that challenges the designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument remains on hold, as fishermen’s groups wait to hear specific recommendations from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.

Zinke announced this week he would not recommend eliminating any national monuments, but he would propose some changes. Supporters of the marine monument off of Cape Cod say if any changes go through, they’ll mount a legal challenge.

The creation of the 5,000 square-mile monument on the edge of Georges Bank this past September closed the area to commercial fishing. Soon after, five fishing organizations across New England filed a lawsuit. The attorney who represents them, Jonathan Wood of the Pacific Legal Foundation, says the suit was put on hold while the monuments were under review.

“It remains on hold, and I suppose until we know what the president is going to do, it will stay on hold,” Wood says.

The lawsuit challenges the authority that President Obama used when he created the monument. Wood says federal law only allows presidents to designate monuments on land owned or controlled by the government.

“And the ocean, 100 miles from the United States, is obviously not land,” says Wood. “But it’s also not owned or controlled by the federal government.”

Read and listen to the full story at Maine Public Radio

Few Answers on Marine Monument as review ends

August 25, 2017 — BOSTON — The future of a national monument off the coast of Massachusetts is unclear Thursday after Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke wrapped up a review of 27 monuments, but did not publicly disclose his recommendations.

The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine Monument, a roughly 4,900 square-mile area south of Cape Cod designated as a monument by President Barack Obama in 2016, was among those targeted for review by the Trump Administration.

While environmental advocates applauded Obama’s decision, made under powers granted through the Antiquities Act, the commercial fishing industry, port communities and some elected officials pushed back against its strict limits on fishing.

Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration had knocked what they described as a lack of public process and conflicts with existing marine planning processes. Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton said in May that he hoped the review would yield modifications “recognizing the work that went into the ocean management plan and the public process around this issue.”

Zinke announced Thursday that he had sent his recommendations and findings to President Donald Trump. The announcement named the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts as among eight monuments Zinke visited during his 120-day review, but did not specify if he was suggesting any changes to that area or others.

Read the full story from State House News Service at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Fishers Hope They’ll Return to Atlantic Monument

August 25, 2017 — PORTLAND, Maine — Fishing groups say they’re optimistic that they will be able to return to the area of ocean designated as the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke says Thursday the monument will remain, but also says it could be altered. He hasn’t yet offered more specifics.

Many fishermen have opposed the creation of the monument because it limits their ability to harvest valuable species such as swordfish, lobsters, crabs and squid.

Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance executive director Richard Fuka says he’s “extremely optimistic” fishermen will be able to return to the fishing grounds. He says the area should be kept open because of demand for locally caught seafood.

Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association executive director Beth Casoni says she would like to see the monument redefined as the size of “a postage stamp.”

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News & World Report

NCFC Members View Interior Department Review of National Monuments As Step In the Right Direction

Responsibly and sustainably caught Atlantic red crab, harvested from the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Monument region, and landed in New Bedford, Massachusetts, being served at Luke’s Lobster in Washington, D.C.

August 24, 2017 — WASHINGTON — The following was released by Saving Seafood’s National Coalition for Fishing Communities (NCFC):

This afternoon, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke delivered his recommendations to President Trump on changes to existing national monuments. While the details of the Secretary’s recommendations have not been made public, the AP reported today that they pertain to a “handful” of monuments, and include boundary adjustments and restoration of public access for uses such as fishing.

In March, Mayor Jon Mitchell of New Bedford, Massachusetts, the nation’s top-grossing commercial fishing port, submitted testimony to Congress on behalf of the NCFC expressing concern over marine monuments. The mayor released the following statement in light of Secretary Zinke’s findings and recommendations today on national monuments:

“The fisheries management process under the existing Magnuson Act is far from perfect but its great strength is that it has afforded ample structured opportunities for all stakeholders to study and comment on policy decisions and for peer review of the scientific basis for those decisions. The marine monument designation process may have been well intended, but it has simply lacked a comparable level of industry input, scientific rigor, and deliberation. That is why I think the decision to step back and reassess how best to proceed on marine monument designations ought to be welcomed no matter where one stands in the current fisheries debates. We are now presented with an opportunity to integrate the monument designation process with the proven processes established under Magnuson, and that will lead to better policy and better outcomes for all stakeholders.”

Robert Vanasse, Executive Director of Saving Seafood and the NCFC, released the following statement:

“We appreciate Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s comments to the Associated Press regarding his report to the President on the review of national monuments created by prior administrations. We are encouraged by his statement that in certain national monuments, public access for uses including fishing would be maintained or restored. We agree with the Secretary that regions inside monuments can be protected ‘by keeping public access to traditional uses.’ The Secretary’s review has been professional, open, and transparent. The Secretary and his staff have been respectful and courteous. They have listened and paid attention to the concerns of our members whose interests were damaged by actions of previous administrations. The vitriol aimed at the Secretary and his staff, and the inaccurate mass e-mail campaigns from numerous groups who oppose a thoughtful review of these monuments has been unfortunate. We look forward to seeing the Secretary’s recommendations in full after they are reviewed by the White House, and we are hopeful for a return to the management of fisheries under the Magnuson-Stevens Act in the regions contained in these marine monuments.”

The following members of our National Coalition for Fishing Communities will comment upon the release of the Secretary’s full recommendations:

  • Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association
  • Destin Charter Boat Association
  • Fisheries Survival Fund
  • Garden State Seafood Association
  • Hawaii Longline Association
  • Long Island Commercial Fishing Association
  • North Carolina Fisheries Association
  • Seafreeze Shoreside
  • Southeastern Fisheries Association
  • Western Fishboat Owners Association
  • West Coast Seafood Processors Association

Chairman Bishop Statement on Secretary Zinke’s National Monument Review

August 24, 2017 — WASHINGTON — The following was released by the House Committee on Natural Resources:

Today, Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) issued the following statement in reaction to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s final review of national monument designations under the Antiquities Act (Act):

“I am encouraged by the recommendations to revise previous designations that were inconsistent with the law and outside the Act’s size limitations. It is my hope that President Trump takes this opportunity to begin realigning uses of the law with its intended purpose. It’s also incumbent on Congress to pursue reforms to the Act that ensure it is being used to protect antiquities while providing meaningful local input in the designation process and reasonable continued public access to these iconic areas. Ultimately, only Congress can restore integrity to this law and prevent future abuses.”

Additionally, Chairman Bishop hosted a press call this morning to discuss the Trump Administration’s review of national monuments and reforms to the Antiquities Act:

Listen to Chairman Bishop’s statement here

Listen to a Q&A with Chairman Bishop here

Zinke to AP: Boundary adjustments, restoration of uses to be included in national monument recommendations

August 24, 2017 — BILLINGS, Mont. — The following is excerpted from an Associated Press story published today:

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said he’s recommending that none of 27 national monuments carved from wilderness and ocean and under review by the Trump administration be eliminated.

But there would be changes to a “handful,” he said.

Zinke told The Associated Press that unspecified boundary adjustments for some monuments designated over the past four decades will be included in the recommendations he planned to give President Donald Trump on Thursday. None of the sites would revert to new ownership, he said, while public access for uses such as hunting, fishing or grazing would be maintained or restored.

“There’s an expectation we need to look out 100 years from now to keep the public land experience alive in this country,” Zinke said. “You can protect the monument by keeping public access to traditional uses.”

Read the full story at the Associated Press

Trump team nears decision on national monuments

August 21, 2017 — As Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke approaches the 24 August deadline for his recommendations to President Donald Trump on whether to alter dozens of national monuments, conservation proponents say it remains all but impossible to predict which sites the administration could target for reductions or even wholesale elimination.

In recent months, Zinke has traveled from coast to coast as he conducted the review, which included 27 national monuments created since 1996, the majority of which are larger than 100,000 acres.

Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, Atlantic Ocean

Obama created the first Atlantic marine monument in 2016 when he designated nearly 5,000 square miles for preservation off the coast of Massachusetts.

But the decision — which barred oil and gas exploration in the area and restricted commercial fishing — drew a lawsuit from Northeastern fishermen, including the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association, Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association, Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance and Garden State Seafood Association.

The case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, but a judge stayed action in the case in May to await the outcome of the Trump administration’s reviews (E&E News PM, May 12).

During his visit to the East Coast in June, Zinke stopped in Boston to meet with both fishermen’s groups and scientists about the monument.

The Boston Globe reported that Zinke appeared sympathetic while meeting with about 20 representatives of New England’s seafood industry.

“When your area of access continues to be reduced and reduced … it just makes us noncompetitive,” Zinke said at the time. “The president’s priority is jobs, and we need to make it clear that we have a long-term approach to make sure that fishing fleets are healthy.”

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, Hawaii

This site near Hawaii is the world’s largest marine protected area at nearly 600,000 square miles.

Bush first designated the site — originally named the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument — in 2006, then renamed it to Papahānaumokuākea in early 2007 in honor of Hawaiian gods Papahānaumoku and Wākea, whose mythology includes the creation of the Hawaiian archipelago and its people.

In 2016, Obama opted to quadruple the site’s size to protect the 7,000 species that live in the monument’s boundaries, as well as to extend prohibitions on commercial fishing and extractive activities (E&E Daily, Aug. 26, 2016).

The Trump administration could opt to try to roll back those prohibitions as well as the monument’s size.

Read the full story from E&E News at Science Magazine

BBC: Meet the fishermen beached by Obama

August 14, 2017 — Today, the BBC published a short video by journalist Charlie Northcott in which several fishermen discuss how they have been impacted by the designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. The monument, located off the coast of New England, was created by President Obama in the fall of 2016 using executive authority under the Antiquities Act. NOAA is currently reviewing the monument as part of President Trump’s order to review all national monuments created since 1996.

Tomorrow is the last day to submit comments to inform this review. If you have not already submitted comments, Saving Seafood encourages you to do so here.

Watch the video at BBC News

Read about the monument designation at the Boston Globe

Read about Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s recent meeting with New England fishermen at the Boston Globe