The Biden-Harris Administration announced on Oct. 11 that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is designating 4,543 square miles of coastal and offshore waters along 116 miles of California’s central coast as America’s 17th national marine sanctuary.
The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary will conserve the area’s diverse range of marine life and celebrate Indigenous peoples’ connections to the region. It will be the third largest sanctuary in the National Marine Sanctuary System.
"The announcement . . . couldn't have come at a better time,” said Violet Sage Walker, chair of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, which nominated the sanctuary in 2015 under the leadership of her father, the late Chief Fred Collins.
“This recognition is a crucial moment for our community. It will not only raise awareness of the Chumash People around the world, but also honor the legacy of my late father and affirm our commitment to the stewardship of our land. I hope we will be remembered for our dedication to actively protecting and nurturing Mother Earth and Grandmother Ocean,” Walker said.
“I am grateful to the Indigenous and community leaders who have helped advocate for these protections over the past decade and more,” said Congressman Salud Carbajal (CA-24). “The historic designation . . . comes not a moment too soon. As our oceans and our communities are facing unprecedented challenges from a changing climate, this new sanctuary comes at a critical time for our region.”
Our Sierra Club was ecstatic too, but Jim Hines vice-chair of the SB-Ventura Chapter, wondered if the Trump Administration could push back on it. “We now have to work just as hard to stop the incoming Trump Administration from providing no funds for the new sanctuary or even the stated possibility of eliminating the sanctuary altogether,”
Perhaps it will take effect before Trump, following 45 days of continuous session of the U.S. Congress, which is anticipated to be in December.
The action advances President Biden’s ocean conservation legacy and the America the Beautiful Initiative, which supports locally led collaborative conservation efforts across the country, conserving and restoring at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030, which our Sierra Club supports.
Stretching from just south of Diablo Canyon Power Plant in San Luis Obispo County to the Gaviota Coast in Santa Barbara County, the sanctuary will bring comprehensive community- and ecosystem-based management to nationally significant natural, historical, archeological and cultural resources — including kelp forests, rocky reefs, sandy beaches, underwater mountains and more than 200 NOAA-documented shipwrecks.
NOAA Administrator Richard Spinrad said, “The sanctuary designation will support and conserve the area’s rich biodiversity, create new opportunities for research and economic development, including recreation and tourism, and co-exist with renewable energy, fisheries and other sustainable ocean uses.”
The sanctuary’s boundaries exclude areas where future subsea electrical transmission cables and floating offshore substations could be installed outside the sanctuary to connect the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area to the electrical power grid at Morro Bay and Diablo Canyon Power Plant, ensuring that the sanctuary meets both conservation and clean energy goals. NOAA will consider a potential expansion of the sanctuary in the coming years, after transmission cables have been laid.
The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians will also play an active role in preserving their traditions and managing these important cultural and ecosystem resources.
"Generations of U.S. land and water policies have placed Native Americans at a great disadvantage throughout our history,” said Kenneth Kahn, Chair of the Santa Ynez Band. “Today's announcement is a sign that things are changing. The Chumash tribal government never relinquished its aboriginal right to manage our traditional homelands. We are grateful that NOAA recognizes this inherent sovereignty and welcomed us as a co-steward of the sanctuary that bears our name."