Under the Sea
A wild, vital underwater world exists just off of New England’s shores — and President Obama has the chance to protect it.
As the National Park Service turns 100 years old this year, we Americans will celebrate the serene beauty of our natural places and marvel at the wildlife that is free to roam, secure from harm. From the dizzying Grand Canyon to Hawaii’s great volcanoes to the grizzly bears, bison, and wolves of Yellowstone, our national park system is the envy of the world. It is famously known as “America’s best idea.”
Today’s “best idea” is to extend that same permanent protection to our ocean treasures.
Just off the New England coastline, a spectacular underwater world of rugged mountains, plunging canyons, and ancient volcanoes teeming with dazzling, otherworldly life rivals any one of our national parks. Where America’s continental shelf drops off to the pitch-black abyss of the deep Atlantic Ocean, five massive canyons plunge, some deeper than the Grand Canyon. Just beyond these, four extinct underwater volcanoes (called seamounts) rise as high as 7,700 feet from the ocean floor, higher than any mountain east of the Rockies. These are the only seamounts in U.S. Atlantic waters. Closer to shore, a steep mountain ridge rises from the muddy basin to a ledge that comes within 40 feet of the surface.
These mountains, canyons, and seamounts nurture a stunning array of life-forms, including ancient deep-sea corals (some the size of small trees), the Atlantic Coast’s largest kelp forest, abundant fish and crustacean populations, and even the endangered sperm whale.
The New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts, located off Cape Cod, and Cashes Ledge, in the Gulf of Maine, are untouched, wild ocean areas. There has been a groundswell of public support for permanently protecting these areas. And it is in keeping with our fundamentally democratic tradition of protecting special places for all Americans — for all generations — to do so.
There are no ocean areas along the Eastern Seaboard that are fully protected as a marine national monument (there are four such monuments in the U.S. Pacific). This is astounding, considering that we control the largest expanse of ocean of any country in the world. The United States has a tremendous opportunity — and responsibility — to be a global leader in protecting our oceans.
We’ve led in this regard before. When America formally protected the geothermal wonders of Yellowstone in 1872, we established the world’s first national park. Today there are nearly 7,000 national parks around the world.
A diverse group of marine-oriented businesses, hundreds of marine scientists, aquariums, conservation organizations, and members of the public are calling on the Obama administration to designate both the New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts and Cashes Ledge as the first marine national monument in the Atlantic Ocean. A monument designation would protect these priceless ocean treasures from all types of commercial extraction that can damage them, including commercial fishing, oil and gas exploration, and sand and gravel mining.
Last week, scientists associated with New England’s most respected aquariums released an in-depth analysis that details exactly how ecologically vital these ocean areas are. The analysis demonstrates that they are biodiversity hot spots, home to 73 different species of deep sea corals (including several newly discovered ones) as well as a range of dolphin and whale species. Habitat diversity is also unusually high, with nine different major, interconnected habitat types. These areas also serve as source habitats, providing commercially valuable fish species to other areas. And, finally, the report notes that many species in and around the proposed monument areas — like the fragile and long-lived corals — are particularly vulnerable to human activities. A presentation on the study can be viewed here.
As climate change and ocean acidification continue to affect ocean life, it becomes more and more urgent to protect important ocean habitats. One of the few ways we can increase the ability of ocean life to withstand warmer and more acidic waters is to reduce stresses resulting from human impacts. We also need to protect genetic and species diversity. Permanent protection of the unique habitats off the New England coast — from the seafloor to the sea surface — would provide an important refuge for a tremendous diversity of ocean life, from tiny phytoplankton to endangered sea turtles, during rapid climate change.
A healthy, resilient ocean is the basis for thriving recreation, tourism, and commercial activities that drive coastal economies; it also provides many ecosystem services that protect our planet. The New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts and Cashes Ledge are striking examples of what a healthy ocean should look like. These regions have been remarkably free from human disturbance to date, thanks to a combination of partial fishing restrictions and natural protective features. But the window for protecting them is closing, as the push to fish, drill, and mine in more and more places puts these fragile habitats and the ocean wildlife that depend on them at risk.
President Obama says he is considering whether to give national marine monument status to the New England Coral Canyons and Seamounts. We hope he’ll give the same consideration to Cashes Ledge.
As the President weighs his options, now is the time for you to make your voice heard.
Help save New England’s oceans! Urge President Obama to establish a Marine National Monument in the Atlantic.
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