January 6 marks the twelfth anniversary of the 2009 establishment of our three Pacific marine national monuments: Rose Atoll, Marianas Trench and Pacific Remote Islands.
As a scientist who has witnessed firsthand the wonders of each of these special ocean places, I am proud and grateful that they form the foundation of our nation’s strong ocean conservation legacy.
Created and expanded by presidents from both sides of the aisle, they are an inspiration to Hawaii and the world.
Now, they have the chance to provide a blueprint of hope for a future healthy ocean.
The past four years have seen many attacks on our oceans by the current administration, including rollbacks of protections for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument in the Atlantic, which paved the way for industrial fishing. We have faced the threat of the same happening to our precious and irreplaceable Pacific marine monuments.
As my Hawaii-based scientist colleagues and I stated last summer, stripping these places of their important protections would be a damaging and senseless act.
Rose Atoll, the Pacific Remote Islands and the Marianas Trench are among the crown jewels of our nation’s network of marine protected areas. We must build upon their legacy, not tear it down.
These marine monuments protect some of the last wild places in the ocean. Within their boundaries, top predators like tunas and sharks hunt in waters free of industrial fishing, and protected species like sea turtles and whales migrate undisturbed.
Coral-encrusted seamounts teem with life and are safe from the looming threat of deep-sea mining. The islands within these monuments are home to significant bio-cultural resources and history that must be respected and preserved for future generations.
These monuments also serve as living laboratories for scientific exploration and discovery. On a recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expedition exploring seamounts in the Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Monument, over 80% of the species observed were new to science, demonstrating how much we still have to learn.
And importantly, there is no credible evidence that the Pacific monuments have had a negative economic impact on Hawaii’s fishing fleet. In fact, they are likely source areas that benefit fisheries outside their boundaries.
But our ocean is currently facing unprecedented challenges. It has absorbed over 90% of the heat and nearly a third of the carbon dioxide generated from human-driven greenhouse gas emissions, creating an ocean that is warmer, more acidic and increasingly starved of oxygen.
Nearly every corner of the ocean has been touched by humans. And the ocean’s biodiversity is at risk, with more than one-third of all reef-forming corals and marine mammals currently threatened with extinction.
Luckily, we know marine protected areas like our Pacific marine monuments can help. These important conservation tools protect areas of the ocean from human pressures like industrial fishing, offshore oil and gas exploration, deep-sea mining and energy development, giving these areas a chance to heal.
Research has shown that when it comes to marine protected areas, the stronger the conservation measures, the more effective those areas are at restoring and preserving our ocean’s biodiversity, increasing yields in adjacent fisheries and enhancing the resilience of ecosystems in the face of climate change.
For these reasons, scientists like myself are recommending that we designate 30% of all ocean waters currently under U.S. jurisdiction as marine protected areas by 2030. This goal, backed by strong scientific research and endorsed by leaders across the globe, can help our ocean recover and remain healthy and economically viable for generations to come.
I am relieved and heartened that the incoming administration recognizes not only the importance of preserving these special places but also of building upon their legacy to ensure that the rest of our ocean is well-managed and, where needed, well-protected.
I applaud President-elect Joe Biden for his commitment to protect 30% of our U.S. ocean and land by 2030.
Here in Hawaii, we are fortunate to have strong champions for our ocean in Sens. Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono, Gov. David Ige and Reps. Ed Case and Kai Kahele.
Our state consistently serves as a leader in ocean conservation that is grounded in strong Hawaiian traditions of sustainable use, and we are embarking on our own process to build on that leadership by protecting 30% of our state waters by 2030.
After all, in 2016 Hawaii became the official birthplace of the “30×30” movement, when leaders from over 180 countries at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Honolulu announced the global goal to protect 30% of the planet by 2030.
Setting aside America’s treasured ocean places may be the last, best chance to secure our ocean’s health into the future. Let’s celebrate the 12th anniversary of the establishment of the Rose Atoll, Marianas Trench and Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monuments by recognizing the significant benefits of protecting these special places and renewing our commitment to protect more of our ocean by 2030.