Resolution 2023-04
WHEREAS, the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument (PRI), designated in 2009, currently encompasses nearly 490,350 square miles and is already one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world; and
WHEREAS, proposed Marine Sanctuary designation would encompass the existing Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument and extend to the full limit of the Exclusive Economic Zone (200 nautical miles) around Howland and Baker Islands, Kingman Reef and Palmyra Atoll; and
WHEREAS, the current boundaries of the monument do not fully protect the habitat and travel routes for protected whales, monk seals, sea turtles, sharks, and albatrosses; and
WHEREAS, Marine Sanctuary designation would expand protection to nearly 754,830 square miles of protected waters, creating the world’s largest marine protected area; and
WHEREAS, Marine Sanctuary designation would provide PRI with clear and comprehensive legal protections for sanctuary resources and complement the high level of protection provided by the existing Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument; and
WHEREAS, the monument includes predator-dominated ecosystems with strong populations of sharks, groupers, and other apex predators, which have been heavily overfished elsewhere; and
WHEREAS, the proposed Marine Sanctuary area is exceptionally diverse with near-pristine ecosystems supporting the greatest proportion of apex predators of any coral reef ecosystem in the world and supports 450 coral species, more than 400 fish species, 56 seabird species, and many threatened, endangered and depleted species that thrive in the area including rare melon-headed whales and a potentially new species of beaked whale; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 98 seamounts exist within the proposed protected area, where potential new species of coral, fish and marine bacteria and most of the deep sea biodiversity in this area remains unexplored, with recent expeditions identifying new species on every dive; and
WHEREAS, a growing body of science shows that large fully protected marine areas, such as Pacific Remote Islands, are more resilient to climate change and essential to mitigating the impacts of a warming planet; and
WHEREAS, Marine Sanctuary designation would serve to honor the memory and sacrifice of the members of Hui Panalā’au, 130 mostly Native Hawaiian young men who were sent to Holland, Baker and Jarvis islands from 1935 to 1942 which enabled the US to claim jurisdiction of the area; and
WHEREAS, the Monument protects traditional heiau (temples), ko‘a (fishing grounds and shrines), culturally significant species such as sharks, sea turtles, and other ‘aumākua (ancestral family gods), and the flight paths and foraging habitat of seabirds observed during traditional ocean voyaging by canoe; and
WHEREAS, the Monument currently serves as an intact cultural voyaging seascape where traditional wayfinding, and the preservation of traditional culture and history of pacific seafaring peoples is still practiced today; and
WHEREAS, nearby Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument currently serves as the only intact cultural voyaging seascape within the Hawaiian Islands, adding sanctuary status to the monument provides for a premier classroom area for traditional wayfinding, preserving and promoting the culture and history of pacific seafaring peoples which rely on the health of the ocean; and
WHEREAS, the proposal to expand the monument’s boundaries through Marine Sanctuary designation comes at a critical time when pollution, overfishing, deep sea mining, invasive species and climate change are seriously damaging the health of the world’s oceans; and
WHEREAS, the National Wildlife Federation’s Hawai‘i affiliate, Conservation Council for Hawai‘i, is a leading member of the Protect Pacific Remote Islands Coalition, is active in local, state, and national efforts to secure Marine Sanctuary status and submitted nomination for National Marine Sanctuary status to President Biden in March of 2023.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, at its Annual Meeting assembled June 21-24, 2023, calls upon the Secretary of Commerce to promptly designate the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument as a National Marine Sanctuary and expand the boundaries of protection to 200 nautical miles pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuary nomination submitted by the Protect Pacific Remote Islands Coalition using the authority granted to the Secretary by the National Marine Sanctuaries Act; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the U.S. Secretaries will work in coordination with Indigenous Pacific Islanders to rename the Marine Sanctuary through a culturally appropriate process that honors the cultural, historic and ancestral significance of the region, and develops an Indigenous directed co-management plan for the sanctuary.