Status
The Biden administration has restored marine monument protections, including full protections to the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument and is considering other marine monument and marine sanctuary expansions.
Why It Matters
Our marine national monuments and marine sanctuaries protect over 1 million square miles of ocean ecosystems, preserve cultural resources, and provide opportunities for recreation and tourism. They are at risk of being downsized or exposed to commercial fishing and other activities that compromise their protection.
Timeline
Feb. 6, 2017 An environmental law firm submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Department of Justice (DOJ) seeking “‘final legal advice’ relating to the president’s authority to designate, withdraw, expand, or modify national monuments under the Antiquities Act.”
March 7, 2017 A coalition of fishing groups filed a lawsuit in the DC District Court over the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts monument designation, calling it unlawful under the Antiquities Act, and seeks an injunction to preclude enforcement of the fishing ban. The lawsuit is stayed after the April 2017 Executive Orders on monuments and energy development are issued. Mass. Lobstermen’s Association v. Ross, No. 17-406 (D.D.C.).
March 15, 2018 The DC District lifted the stay on the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts lawsuit, as requested by the plaintiffs, and agreed to by federal attorneys.
April 26, 2017 President Trump signed Executive Order 13792, directing the Secretary of the Interior to review all National Monuments (including Marine National Monuments) designated or expanded since January 1, 1996 under the Antiquities Act that are at least 100,000 acres or were made “without adequate public outreach and coordination.”
April 28, 2017 The president signed Executive Order 13795 ordering the Secretary of Commerce to review all Marine National Monuments and Marine Sanctuaries designated or expanded since 2007, to assess “the opportunity costs associated with potential energy and mineral exploration and production from the Outer Continental Shelf, in addition to any impacts on production in the adjacent regions.”
June 26, 2017 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), ordered by the Secretary of Commerce, asked for public comment on eleven marine national monuments and marine national sanctuaries it was reviewing pursuant to Executive Order 13795.
Aug. 24, 2017 Secretary Zinke submitted his final recommendations for closing or shrinking monuments to the White House. The report was not made public, prompting environmental groups to later submit multiple FOIA requests for the report and related documents.
Oct. 12, 2017 An environmental law firm sued DOJ for failing to respond to its FOIA request from February 6, 2017.
Oct. 25, 2017 While recommendations on the marine sanctuaries were due on this date, the Department of Commerce said the report is undergoing review, but has not been released publicly.
Nov. 2, 2017 Environmental groups sued DOI for failure to respond to multiple FOIA requests (dated from March 3, 2017 – September 1, 2017), including one related to Zinke’s August 24, 2017 report.
Dec. 5, 2017 Interior Secretary Zinke’s report to President Trump on monument and sanctuary recommendations, which was issued in August 2017, was finally made public. His recommendations included changing the boundaries and opening to commercial fishing two marine monuments (Rose Atoll, Pacific Remote Islands), and opening Northeast Canyons and Seamounts to fishing as well.
April 16, 2018 The Department of Justice moved to dismiss the fishing groups’ lawsuit challenging the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts. DOJ argued that “Congress has granted the President broad discretion to designate a monument on lands owned or controlled by the federal government, and such decision-making is not generally subject to judicial review.” Mass. Lobstermen’s Association v. Ross, No. 17-406 (D.D.C.).
June 2018 It is reported that NOAA is considering opening marine national monuments to commercial fishing as early as September 2018. The proposal was reportedly included in a “Vision Setting Summit” presentation by Rear Admiral Timothy Gallaudet, acting administrator of NOAA. Secretary Zinke’s memorandum, released on December 5, 2017 and outlining his monument recommendations, included the recommendation to eliminate the prohibition on commercial fishing and give fishery management authority to the regional fishery management councils under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts, Pacific Remote Islands, and Rose Atoll marine monuments.
Oct. 5, 2018 The DC District Court held that President Obama did possess the proper authority under the Antiquities Act to establish Canyons and Seamounts Monument in 2016. In response to the question of whether the marine monuments qualified for the sort of protections created by President Obama, the court held that “The Antiquities Act reaches lands both dry and wet.” Mass. Lobstermen’s Association v. Ross, No. 17-406 (D.D.C.).
Oct. 22, 2019 The DC Circuit heard oral argument in the case challenging President Obama’s designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. A coalition of fishing interests led by the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association filed the appeal with the DC Circuit on Dec. 7, 2018. Mass. Lobstermen’s Association v. Wilbur Ross, Docket No.18-05353.
Dec. 27, 2019 The DC Circuit dismisses the fishing coalition’s challenge in Mass. Lobstermen’s Association v. Wilbur Ross, affirming the district court and upholding the creation of the Canyons and Seamounts Monument. Docket No.18-05353.
May 8, 2020 The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council sent a letter to President Trump requesting that he lift the commercial fishing restrictions in the Pacific marine national monuments. The letter is in response to Trump’s May Executive Order on Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth.
June 5, 2020 President Trump signed a proclamation allowing commercial fishing in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.
June 17, 2020 Environmental groups filed a lawsuit challenging President Trump’s reversal of the commercial fishing ban in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. Conservation Law Foundation et al. v. Trump, Docket No. 1:20-cv-01589 (D.D.C.).
Dec. 7, 2020 The federal government urged the Supreme Court to deny certiorari (decline to hear) an appeal that could overturn the creation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National monument. The government’s brief argues that the plaintiff commercial lobstering groups no longer have standing to challenge the monument’s creation because President Trump lifted the commercial fishing ban. Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association v. Ross, No. 20-97 (S. Ct. 2020) (appealing No. 18-05353 (D.C. Cir. 2019)).
Biden Administration
Jan. 20, 2021 President Biden issued an Executive Order establishing a policy to “restore and expand our national treasures and monuments,” and specifically recommending the Secretary of the Interior to review President Trump’s proclamation lifting the prohibition on commercial fishing within the monument, and issue a report summarizing the findings of that review within 60 days.
March 17, 2021 Interior Secretary Haaland delayed recommendations to President Biden on restoring the boundaries and conditions of Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante, and the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts monuments in order to meet in-person with stakeholders in Utah. President Biden’s Jan. 20 EO on public health and the environment ordered the Secretary to review these boundaries within 60 days.
March 22, 2021 The Supreme Court declined to review President Obama’s creation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. Nevertheless, Chief Justice John Roberts signaled that the Court is open to reviewing whether the creation of other monuments was consistent with the “smallest area compatible” provision of the Antiquities Act. Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association v. Raimondo, No. 20-97.
April 6, 2021 The Director of NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries confirmed the agency is no longer reviewing monument designations as required under former President Trump’s executive order 13795. President Biden rescinded the Trump order on January 20, 2021 when he issued Executive Order 13990.
Oct. 9, 2021 President Biden signed a proclamation restoring full protections to the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, prohibiting commercial fishing within its boundaries. The proclamation does not address whether President Trump’s removal of those restrictions was a valid exercise of authority under the Antiquities Act.
Apr. 12, 2022 Fishermen in New Jersey and Massachusetts represented by Pacific Legal Foundation sued the Biden administration in the US District Court for the District of New Jersey, claiming that the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument designation and fishing restrictions exceed the President’s authority under the Antiquities Act and violates constitutional separation of powers.
June 8, 2022 The Biden administration announced plans to designate Hudson Canyon, the largest offshore canyon on the Atlantic coast located off New York and New Jersey, as a new national marine sanctuary. NOAA will oversee the designation process, which will include public comment, an environmental impact statement, and other administrative processes.
June 15, 2022 Environmental groups intervened in support of the Biden administration in litigation by Northeast fishermen challenging the designation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, stating that the groups have an interest in “ensuring the continued protection of this national treasure.”
March 21, 2023 President Biden directs the Secretary of Commerce to consider initiating a new National Marine Sanctuary designation to protect waters around the Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Monument. This expansion would increase the protected areas from 50 miles to 200 miles out from land.
May 19, 2023 NOAA announced that it is considering designating 740 square miles of Pennsylvania’s Lake Erie waters, from the shoreline to the Canadian border as the Lake Erie Quadrangle National Marine Sanctuary. The proposed area is notable for containing up to 196 historic shipwrecks. The proposed sanctuary would exclude the Port of Erie as to allow for continued commercial shipping.
Aug. 25, 2023 NOAA seeks public comment on its new proposal for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties in California. The proposed sanctuary would protect 5,617 square miles; a 2,000 mile reduction from the protected area first sought by the Chumash Tribe and others. NOAA reduced the area to exclude areas that “could serve as a corridor for…offshore wind energy production” given the necessary infrastructure “may not be compatible with a national marine sanctuary.”
Feb. 29, 2024 NOAA released its draft proposal to designate marine portions of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in Hawaii as a national marine sanctuary. NOAA claims the proposed sanctuary would add to the management measures and protections provided by the existing monument designations. NOAA is accepting public comments on the draft proposal between March 1 and May 7, 2024, with a target of making the final sanctuary designation by early 2025.