Tag Archives: National Aquarium
N.J.’s ocean canyons: Will these treasures be preserved like national parks?
Because about 75 to 100 miles off the coast of New Jersey — where the continental shelf divides shallow coastal waters and the deep sea — a tale of two canyons is in play involving these geological hot spots. The Baltimore Canyon and the Hudson Canyon, both considered national treasures, are among about 70 such areas along the Mid-Atlantic coastline that are prized by fishermen for their rich species diversity and abundance of marine life. “The canyons are where the fish are … they’re important resources that support our fisheries,” said Michael Luisi, chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council, a Dover, Del.-based fishery management group representing the interests of commercial fishermen from New York to North Carolina. “By blocking this designation, the fishing industry is being selfish and only hurting themselves in the long run,” said Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. Read the story here 13:30
Stakeholders Seek Baltimore Canyon National Marine Sanctuary Designation Withdrawal
Two weeks after the National Aquarium expressed a willingness to consider withdrawing an application to designate the Baltimore Canyon as a , a coalition of local marina owners and boat captains last week fired off a letter seeking to hold him to his word. Last week, attorney Mark Cropper, who represents multiple resort area marinas, boat owners and captains and other stakeholders in the resort area, fired off his own letter to Racanelli essentially holding the National Aquarium CEO to his word and calling for the application to be withdrawn as offered. Read the story here 08:47
Baltimore Canyon “urban sanctuary” off OC worries fishermen
Capt. Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing in Ocean City said the protection of one small patch of ocean does nothing to protect the ocean environment as a whole. “We have to do a whole lot better than what we are doing,” Hawkins said. “But taking the Baltimore Canyon and protecting the area directly around it is incredibly distressing, these are areas filled with recreational fishermen and commercial fishermen.” While the designation is said to not impact recreational fishing, the unique designation has worried local politicians and fishermen alike, who believe that the sanctuary status could impact the local economy; whether by curbing recreational and tournament fishing or impacting commercial vessels. In Maryland, offshore commercial fishing brings in around $78.2 million annually, or roughly 35 percent of the average annual catch for the Mid-Atlantic Coastline, according to the National Aquarium’s proposal to the NOAA. Read the story here 16:22
National Aquarium Willing To Pull Baltimore Canyon Designation Effort If Community Opposition Continues
After backlash from local, state and federal leaders opposing the proposed designation of the Baltimore Canyon as an Urban National Marine Sanctuary, National Aquarium officials late last week responded with a commentary outlining a willingness to compromise on the proposal or even withdraw it altogether. In response to the concerns, National Aquarium CEO John Racanelli issued a statement of his own in the form of an open letter in an attempt to clear up the misconceptions.“With good intentions, we reached out to, continues,, Two weeks ago, the Mayor and Council fired off a letter opposing the designation to Governor Larry Hogan and state leaders. Last week, a coalition of U.S. Congressmen representing mid-Atlantic states fired off a similar letter to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Administrator Dr. Kathryn Sullivan expressing serious concern with the proposal and calling into question its legality. Read the story here 12:21
Ocean City Letter States ‘Unconditional Opposition’ To Baltimore Canyon Marine Sanctuary Designation
Calling a potential designation of the offshore Baltimore Canyon as the nation’s first Urban National Marine Sanctuary potentially “devastating” to the multi-million dollar fishing industry, resort officials this week agreed to send a letter of opposition to state and federal representatives. In October, National Aquarium officials announced they were seeking an Urban National Marine Sanctuary designation for the Baltimore Canyon, a vast 28-mile long and five-mile wide submarine canyon off the coast of Ocean City that lies at the center of the resort’s multi-million dollar fishing industry. According to the National Aquarium’s petition drive, a designation of the nation’s first Urban National Marine Sanctuary for the Baltimore Canyon “presents a unique opportunity to connect an urban population to the ecological treasure using cutting edge deep sea exploration technology.” Read the rest here 08:42
Baltimore Canyon Urban National Marine Sanctuary process will go forward
A month ago, the National Aquarium launched a petition to establish the 28-mile long underwater rift as its first Urban National Marine Sanctuary. The designation would help protect the rare deep-sea coral and ecosystem in the Baltimore Canyon by restricting offshore exploration for minerals, oil and gas. Since the canyon is one of the cornerstones of Ocean City’s fishing industry and, hence, its tourism market, sports fishing advocates have been pushing back on the designation. That culminated in a two-hour forum last week. Charter boat captain Franky Pettolina, the Ocean City Marlin Club president, saw the summit as a symbol of goodwill, but thought that the marine community argued in vain. Under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, any action that removes, injures or damages any sanctuary resource, fish included, are prohibited. National Aquarium Director of Conservation Laura Bankey, who attended the meeting, said people will still be able to fish if the Baltimore Canyon is made a marine sanctuary. “Unlike land conservation areas, everything is allowed to continue until it is closed off [in a marine sanctuary],” Bankey said. “Sanctuaries are supposed to be multi-use areas. It’s our intention that recreation and commercial fisheries will be able to use these just like they do today.” Read the rest here 09:14
Sport Fishing Industry Voices Concern With Possible Offshore Sanctuary Idea; Official Provisions Sought Before Designation Considered
On the same day the National Aquarium announced it was seeking an Urban National Marine Sanctuary designation for the Baltimore Canyon off the coast of Ocean City, aquarium officials attempted to reassure the sportfishing community a successful designation would not impact the fertile fishing grounds. When the National Aquarium announced on Monday it was seeking the nation’s first Urban National Marine Sanctuary designation for the Baltimore Canyon off the coast of Ocean City, the knee-jerk reaction from the resort’s sportfishing community was fear of gradually losing more and more of the heart of the multi-million fishing industry. The overriding fear, and there is precedent for it, is that once the federal government gets its foot in the door, more and more regulations would be forthcoming and access to the canyon for recreational and commercial fisherman would be gradually chipped away. However, National Aquarium officials later on Monday attempted to allay those fears. According to spokesperson Corrine Weaver, the National Aquarium is keenly aware of the importance of the recreational and commercial fisheries in the Baltimore Canyon and seeking an Urban National Marine Sanctuary designation would not impact those industries. Read the rest here 21:24
