Tag Archives: Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument

Trump team nears decision on national monuments

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.,,, Obama created the first Atlantic marine monument in 2016 when he designated nearly 5,000 square miles for preservation off the coast of Massachusetts.,, 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.” click here to read the story 11:38

Would Hawaii Marine Monument Expansion Hurt The Tuna Industry?

Conservationists and others are crying foul over letters that state lawmakers recently sent President Obama that urged him to not consider expanding the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument. They’re specifically concerned about the numbers used to justify opposition, calling the estimated $7 million financial hit to the longline tuna fishing industry misleading at best. “It’s just a false logic to suggest that a mobile fishery resource has to be fished in this particular location,” said David Henkin, staff attorney for Earthjustice, a nonprofit environmental law organization. “You’re talking about catching fish,” Henkin said. “You’re not cutting down trees. You’re not mining for gold.” Representatives of the longline fishing industry say it’s not so much about how much money from ahi they would potentially lose if the monument is expanded as it is about the government further limiting the places they can fish. “The fact of the matter is that we continue to be squeezed out of traditional areas,” said Sean Martin, president of the Hawaii Longline Association. Read the story here 08:04

Hawaii Lawmakers To Obama: Don’t Grow Marine Monument

Papahanaumokuakea Marine National MonumentAmid the flurry of final votes on hundreds of bills last week, Hawaii lawmakers privately weighed whether to sign a letter to President Obama that Rep. James Tokioka was circulating during the last few days of the legislative session. The letter called on the president not to consider expanding the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument, stating that “there is no scientific justification or conservation benefit in doing so.” In all, 30 House lawmakers, including Speaker Joe Souki, signed the May 3 letter. Just days earlier, Hawaii Senate President Ron Kouchi sent Obama a nearly identical one. This opposition, which lawmakers kept out of public view, has been overshadowed by a strong public push to expand the monument, officially designated by President George W. Bush as Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument in 2007. Read the rest here 08:27