Featured Image Credit: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research
By Eva Gruber
Think of the Grand Canyon, the shining gem of our National Park System, which millions of Americans adore and treasure. Rich in natural splendor, along with animal and plant life, the Grand Canyon is to be preserved in a state of wilderness for eternity. Now, imagine an underwater version of the Grand Canyon – would you be as moved to protect and value it?
For the first time in twenty years, NOAA has invited communities across the nation to nominate marine areas for sanctuary status. Communities off the coast of the mid-Atlantic are focusing on their underwater canyons. These submarine canyons, which connect the broad eastern continental shelf with the deep ocean abyss, are hotspots of marine biodiversity. They act as nurseries, foraging, and breeding grounds for thousands of species – from marine worms buried deep in the sediment, to seabirds feeding off the choppy surface water.
Thanks to actions taken by the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, the Norfolk Canyon off the coast of Virginia is a top candidate for protection under NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary program. There are more than 50 canyons in the mid-Atlantic region, but Norfolk Canyon is one of the largest. The canyon has also become an area of concern for conservationists due to interest in the region by oil and gas developers.
The process for becoming a national marine sanctuary depends on the cooperation of several agencies. First, the nominating group must make a strong case for conserving the area. Then, the local city council must show a resolution of support, after which a nomination will be filed with NOAA. Upon review, if NOAA deems the canyon especially worthy of conservation, an environmental impact statement would be required and public hearings scheduled. The entire process could take three years, and in the end there is no guarantee that Norfolk Canyon – or any of the other nominated canyons – would join NOAA’s fourteen other national marine sanctuaries.
In the mid-1980’s, Norfolk Canyon was proposed but didn’t make the cut. The marine national sanctuary program was started in 1975, and since then, fourteen sanctuaries have been created. The first sanctuary to be protected was in an area off the coast of Cape Hatterass, North Carolina, where the ironclad ship the Monitor sank. National marine sanctuaries now protect over 600,000 square miles of American ocean.
Less than 1% of the ocean is protected. Due to renewed public interest in protecting more ocean habitat, NOAA is willing to expand their national marine sanctuary program. Each sanctuary gains a headquarters staffed with experts and researchers in marine science. A budget supporting education, outreach, and research, sometimes in the millions, is also part of the package.
The Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center hopes to become the home of the new sanctuary headquarters. They have a focus on Norfolk Canyon, with a 300,000 gallon tank and an exhibit dedicated to the creatures of the canyon. With national marine sanctuary protection, researchers could easily access the canyon to study and better understand it. There are a lot of questions that marine scientists are asking about Norfolk Canyon, such as how did it even form?
Opposition to the nomination could come from the oil, gas and mineral industries, which are banned from national marine sanctuaries. The Navy might also have a critique regarding the new sanctuary if it were to interfere with military exercises or ship movements. Also, fishermen might not be too happy – although studies have shown that the “spillover” effect from no-fishing zones actually increases catch size outside the zone. Fishing is still allowed inside marine sanctuaries, although the activities are restricted as part of fisheries management plans, all in an effort to prevent overfishing.
The area that the Aquarium plans to nominate is 750 square miles, with the 35-mile long canyon centered in the middle. This proposal is definitely ambitious. The Aquarium drew its proposed boundaries to include some fascinating marine features that are outside the canyon, but within the proposed sanctuary, such as shipwrecks, and the Atlantic’s largest methane seep.
Protecting our ocean is critical. It’s just as important as protecting our land, and right now there is an absolute bias towards land protection. Around 10% of land is conserved, while only 1% of the ocean is. This needs to change… after all, we are a blue planet.
Read more about the potential protection of the “biological hotspot.”