On June 13 the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution opposing the Trump administration’s call for a “review” of the Greater Farallones and Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuaries off the county’s shores. The sanctuaries include coastline through Marin and Mendocino county, as well.
The administration is attacking the status of terrestrial and marine sanctuaries across the country to open areas for resource exploration and extraction, including off-shore oil drilling. While this move is highly unpopular with the public, lifting protections would be a gift to energy and mining companies while going backwards on curbing greenhouse gas emissions and moving toward a greener economy.
Before the Board’s vote, Redwood Chapter leaders passed a motion in support of the resolution, saying the administration’s proposed review was “unnecessary,” and the chapter “supports efforts of Sonoma County and other local governments to safeguard the status of these National Marine Sanctuaries and the protections they bring to our coastal waters.”
Sierra Club members have long supported increased preservation of these critical habitats and ecosystems. Local members were among those who fought long and hard to secure the first marine sanctuary designation of the area in 1981. President Obama expanded the sanctuaries by more than double the original square miles in 2015.
The sanctuaries protect about 4,500 square miles of Pacific Ocean waters from the Golden Gate to just north of Point Arena. The National Marine Sanctuary status prohibits oil and gas exploration and drilling, more stringent pollution protections and bans against disturbing the seabed and other resources. It also provides partnerships with local governments to promote programs to protect and enhance marine resources and promote scientific research and education, according to Redwood Chapter Conservation Chair Tom Roth.
The Board’s resolution recognizes the Sonoma County coast as “one of the treasures of the nation, with the continent’s strongest upwelling system creating a bountiful and beautiful coastal ecosystem.”
Roth said upwelling within the sanctuaries bring nutrient-rich waters from the depths to support the marine food chain and an abundance of sea life that extends at least as far south as the Monterey Canyon.
This nutrient-rich water supports an extraordinarily diverse ecosystem, which includes at least 25 endangered or threatened species and 36 marine mammal species, including the blue, gray and humpback whales, seals and sea lions, dolphins, seabirds and sharks.
The Board’s resolution also notes the positive effects a healthy ocean has on tourism, the fishing industry and critical research done at the U.C. Davis Bodega Marine Lab.
It mentions the massive public support received during hearings for the sanctuary expansion, and, it goes on to state that a review of the sanctuary designation would “create unnecessary economic uncertainty and is in disregard to the expectation of fisherman, residents, recreational users, researchers, state and local governments, and others who participated in the process that led to the Sanctuary designation and related protections.”
Boards of Supervisors in Marin and Mendocino counties have already passed resolutions opposing the review.