FYI... Stefanie Rixecker ECOFEM Coordinator ------- Forwarded message follows ------- Contact: Dr. Elliott A. Norse (425) 883-8914 (h&o) [EMAIL PROTECTED] President Clinton Unveils New Plan to Protect America�s Ocean Wildlife Orders Creation of National System of Marine Protected Areas Assateague Island MD. At the start of the Memorial Day weekend, President Clinton announced today what could become the most sweeping protections for marine waters in US history. In response to growing calls from scientists and conservationists, the President ordered federal agencies to establish a comprehensive national system of marine protected areas throughout US marine waters to protect sea life from a growing list of human-caused threats. Marine protected areas (MPAs) are areas of the ocean and coast that are protected from some or all human activities to conserve biodiversity, fisheries, cultural and recreational resources, and to provide valuable natural laboratories for scientific research. Currently, less than 0.1% of US marine waters are fully protected from harm. �I can�t think of a better way to begin the first summer of the new century, � said Dr. Elliott A. Norse, President of Marine Conservation Biology Institute (MCBI), the nonprofit scientific and conservation organization based in Redmond WA whose letter to the President led to today�s Executive Order. �I applaud the Clinton-Gore Administration for taking the most important step ever toward protecting America's marine wildlife and their habitats. By establishing a national system of marine protected areas, President Bill Clinton would do for America's seas in the 21st Century what Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and Jimmy Carter did for America's lands in the 20th Century,� Dr. Norse said. The Executive Order calls for each federal agency with management authority in marine waters�such as the Departments of Commerce and the Interior�to establish new MPAs that contribute to a scientifically based, comprehensive national system of MPAs representing the diversity of ecosystems in US waters. Marine scientists are increasingly calling for expanding the area of MPAs to protect marine life from the growing threats, and�in many cases�for enhancing fisheries in surrounding areas. Today's action came after more than a dozen leading marine scientists at a January MCBI/Cousteau Society workshop urged the Clinton-Gore Administration to establish a comprehensive national system of MPAs. Specifically, the scientists called for full protection of at least 20% of the area of each ecosystem type throughout US seas by 2015. That would be a 200-fold increase over the marine area that is now fully protected. Today�s Executive Order requires federal agencies to complete a biological assessment of the minimum amount of area that should be fully protected from consumptive uses to adequately conserve different habitat types throughout US waters. Mounting evidence of harm to the sea has spurred calls for better conservation. At least 43 % of US fish stocks for which data exist are overfished, as are most of the world�s fishing grounds. Atl antic cod populations�once the staple of New England fishermen�have collapsed. This year the feder al government declared a similar fishery disaster for West Coast groundfish. Mobile fishing gear i ncluding bottom trawls and scallop dredges damage essential fish habitats worldwide by scouring the seafloor, affecting an area nearly 150 times greater than the area of forest clearcut worldwide an nually. All 6 species of sea turtles in US waters are officially threatened or endangered, and � o f marine mammals managed in US waters are at high risk of extinction. Coral reefs in the Florida K eys are declining from sewage pollution and nutrient-laden runoff from nearby lands. Even relative ly obscure but once-common marine species such as New England's barndoor skates and California's wh i! ! ! te a balone are now being considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act. A growing number of marine scientists say that MPAs are the most effective means of safeguarding ma rine wildlife against the two top threats: overfishing and habitat destruction. But additional ste ps must be taken in conjunction with MPAs to address other threats, including pollution, global war ming and non-native invasive species that enter new habitats in ships� ballast water. Until now, the USA's MPAs have lagged those of nations including Australia and New Zealand. In con trast, our 12 National Marine Sanctuaries, administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adm inistration (NOAA) within the Department of Commerce, protect too few areas and offer little protec tion against the major threats of overfishing and destruction of seafloor habitats from fishing. F ew National Parks include marine waters, and those that do�including Glacier Bay and Channel Island s National Parks�often include the types of extractive activities that are prohibited in National P arks on land. President Clinton�s Executive Order will expand the number of marine protected areas and enhance protections of marine wildlife within new and existing MPAs. �From sea to shining sea, from Guam and Alaska to California, from Maine and Texas to Puerto Rico, no nation has greater marine biodiversity than the United States," said MCBI�s Program Director Amy Mathews-Amos. "This Executive Order requires federal agencies now and in the future to work togeth er to create a national system of marine protected areas that is greater than the sum of its parts. By sharing information, systematically examining the diversity of US marine ecosystems and moving forward to designate new marine protected areas, federal agencies can make sure we are conserving representatives of all US marine ecosystem types, and manage them to maintain the critical ecosyste m processes on which we, our marine life and our fisheries depend.� �President Clinton has set the course for this and future administrations to protect marine life fo r the benefit of all Americans,� Dr. Norse said. �But the devil is in the details. We will be wat ching closely to ensure that federal agencies fulfill the spirit and letter of this Executive Order , now and in the future. We won�t rest until the United States has a national system of marine pro tected areas that will protect, restore and allow the sustainable use of America�s wealth of ocean life,� he added. To view a fact sheet on imperiled marine life and the Call for Presidential Action on marine protec ted areas from marine scientists to President Clinton and Vice President Gore, go to http://www.mcb i.org ________________________________________________________________________ Jocelyn Garovoy, Program Assistant Marine Conservation Biology Institute 15806 NE 47th Court, Redmond WA 98052-5208 ph: 1-425-883-8914; fax: 1-425-883-3017; e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] MCBI is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to advancing the science of marine conservation biology and promoting cooperation essential to protecting and restoring the Earth's biological integrity. To learn more, please visit our web site at http://www.mcbi.org ------- End of forwarded message ------- ************************************ Dr. Stefanie S. Rixecker, Senior Lecturer Environmental Management & Design Division Lincoln University, Canterbury PO Box 84 Aotearoa New Zealand E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fax: 64-03-325-3841 ************************************
