Save Spectacular: 50 años de los Santuarios Marinos Nacionales

AL IGUAL QUE MUCHAS GRANDES IDEAS, the National Marine Sanctuary System was forged amid disaster. On the morning of January 28, 1969, workers drilling a new well on Union Oil’s Platform A had a blowout, spilling 3 million gallons of crude oil into the Santa Barbara Channel, blackening popular beaches and killing thousands of seabirds and countless fish and marine mammals. President Richard Nixon, who grew up in Southern California, flew in to walk along the tar-ball-lined shores of his home state, channeling public outrage that inspired grassroots environmentalists and their movement for stronger stewardship of the nation’s ocean resources.

It took another four years, but in 1972 Nixon signed a suite of environmental legislation that forms the foundation of today’s conservation efforts. These laws include the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, Coastal Zone Management Act, National Environmental Policy Act, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, and, of course, the National Marine Sanctuaries Act.  

“The clean air and water we enjoy today,” said Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Director John Armor, “the species that have recovered from historically low population levels, the preserved public access to beaches and coastal waters, the processes that inform and solicit input from the public on projects having an impact on their communities — these are only some of the benefits we can trace back to those historic laws.”

A century earlier, Americans were introduced to the idea of setting aside special places for the enjoyment and pleasure of the people with the establishment of Yellowstone National Park. The creation of modern parks became a powerful tool for conserving and protecting valuable places. As more terrestrial places were set aside for protection, so too were national seashores and wild and scenic rivers. Three years after the ink dried on Nixon’s signature, the underwater resting place of the shipwrecked Civil War ironclad USS Monitor se convirtió en el primer santuario marino nacional de los Estados Unidos. 

En la actualidad, bajo el amparo de la Administración Nacional Oceánica y Atmosférica (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA), el sistema se ha transformado en una red nacional de 15 santuarios marinos nacionales y dos monumentos marinos nacionales que conservan más de 1.605.793 km cuadrados (620.000 millas cuadradas) de espectaculares aguas oceánicas y de los Grandes Lagos, un área casi del tamaño de Alaska. En octubre, el sistema celebrará su quincuagésimo^. aniversario.

From lush seagrass beds to slow-growing, deep-sea corals, the habitats that sanctuary waters protect vary greatly from place to place. While Mallows Bay near the Potomac River guards the largest shipwreck fleet in the Western Hemisphere, Stellwagen Bank near Boston preserves abundant whale-watching habitats, and Monterey Bay nurtures epic kelp forests. Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) in the Gulf of Mexico is home to the world’s northernmost coral reefs. Each site has its own unique history and purpose.  

A tenet of their creation requires sanctuaries to maintain natural biological communities and, as stated in section 301(b) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, “protect and, where appropriate, restore and enhance natural habitats, populations, and ecological processes.” Many sites serve as a proving ground for new approaches to restoring and managing marine ecosystems in the face of climate change and other threats. Mission: Iconic Reefs is a massive collaborative effort to restore almost 3 million square feet of reef at seven iconic sites within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) to a sustainable state. In California, the Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary and Greater Farallones Association are implementing strategies for kelp forest restoration, monitoring, research, and public engagement.

“The reefs are home to this community. They are part of our way of life,” said Sarah Fangman, FKNMS superintendent. “We hope the Mission: Iconic Reefs effort can be beneficial not just in the Florida Keys but also in other reefs around the world. We hope we can give back and pay it forward.”

Sanctuaries are a natural destination for members of the dive community, so much so that it is impossible to estimate how many dives occur each year within their boundaries. “Sanctuaries are not meant to be static displays in a museum,” Fangman said. “They’re meant to be enjoyed by the world. Our job is to manage compatible uses so that these resources are here for generations to come.” There are regulations that divers must follow inside sanctuary boundaries, mostly around collecting natural and cultural items, which is often prohibited or allowed only by permit. 

Los santuarios marinos nacionales también son excelentes lugares para investigar y probar enfoques para mitigar los impactos humanos sobre la vida silvestre. Desde 2007, la NOAA ha trabajado para comprender mejor cómo las colisiones de barcos han afectado a las poblaciones de ballenas en peligro en los santuarios marinos nacionales en la costa oeste. Esta información llevó a la NOAA a crear la iniciativa Blue Whales and Blue Skies (Ballenas azules y cielos azules), donde trabajaron con importantes compañías navieras que redujeron voluntariamente las velocidades de sus buques en áreas críticas a no más de 10 nudos. El programa de reducción de la velocidad de los buques de 2020 redujo más de 635 kg (700 toneladas) de emisiones de polución y percibió una disminución del 35 por ciento en el riesgo de colisión de buques.

Esta mentalidad dio lugar al desarrollo de un sistema de boyas de amarre en los Cayos de la Florida que permite a los buzos y las personas que hacen snorkel explorar legendarios arrecifes de coral sin realizar peligrosos lanzamientos de anclas. Hay casi 500 boyas ancladas en los puntos de buceo más populares en los Cayos, listas para que los barcos amarren de manera segura sobre los delicados corales. Muchos operadores de buceo comerciales que utilizan las boyas son parte de una certificación Blue Star dirigida por los santuarios que promueve el uso responsable y sustentable del ecosistema, lo que incluye buceos de limpieza de desechos donde se eliminan trampas, redes y sedales de pesca descartados.

Además de proteger recursos naturales, los santuarios marinos nacionales también preservan historias culturales como, por ejemplo, naufragios, así como artefactos y lugares históricos. Actualmente, hay 1.211 naufragios conocidos protegidos en todo el sistema de santuarios, con miles que aún esperan ser descubiertos en estas aguas. El programa se centra en varias áreas de investigación clave, tales como historia marítima, inventario y evaluación de sitios y paisajes culturales marítimos.

The people who live and work in the communities surrounding national marine sanctuaries care deeply about these places. Sanctuaries have always been tightly interwoven with the local communities around them, but perhaps the most significant change to the system came in 2014 when the new sanctuary nomination process was implemented, leading to a community-driven way to decide which special underwater places to consider for sanctuary designation. Through this new process, the Mallows Bay–Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary officially became designated in 2016, followed by the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary in 2021.

El sistema de santuarios marinos nacionales sin duda continuará creciendo. En la actualidad, hay cinco santuarios nominados en el inventario que la NOAA está considerando para su designación, incluido el Santuario Marino Nacional Chumash Heritage (Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary) en California. El Santuario Marino Nacional del Lago Ontario (Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary) actualmente está en el proceso de designación, y el público fue invitado recientemente a enviar comentarios sobre el proyecto del plan de gestión. 

Además de agregar nuevos santuarios al sistema, varios santuarios han expandido sus límites a lo largo de los años, como, por ejemplo, Thunder Bay, Cordell Bank y Greater Farallones en 2015 y FGBNMS en enero de 2021. El Santuario Marino Nacional Monitor (Monitor National Marine Sanctuary) también fue propuesto para su expansión en 2016 para proteger el lugar de descanso final de los perdidos en la Segunda Guerra Mundial durante la Batalla del Atlántico.

Bajo el gran titular Save Spectacular, el sistema de santuarios está en medio de una celebración de un año antes del quincuagésimo^. anniversary in October, with a myriad of activities that even include a stamp series from the U.S. Postal Service. “From the very beginning, the enthusiasm, creativity, and can-do spirit of our staff, partners, and volunteers have allowed the sanctuary system to become a global leader in advancing marine protected areas as valuable conservation tools for our planet,” Armor said in announcing the anniversary celebration. “As we look at the many issues facing our ocean and coasts in the next 50 years, I’m reassured that our staff and those who work with us will continue to meet these challenges and ensure that sanctuaries continue to thrive for future generations.”

• Samoa Americana (Pacífico)
• Islas del Canal (Pacífico)
• Cordell Bank (Pacific)
• Cayos de la Florida (Atlántico, golfo de México)
• Flower Garden Banks (golfo de México)
• Gray’s Reef (Atlantic)
• Greater Farallones (Pacífico)
• Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale (Pacífico)
• Mallows Bay (Atlántico)
• Monitor (Atlántico)
• Bahía de Monterrey (Pacífico)
• Olympic Coast (Pacífico)
• Papahānaumokuākea Monument (Pacific)
• Monumento Rose Atoll (Pacífico)
• Stellwagen Bank (Atlántico)
• Thunder Bay (Grandes Lagos)
• Costa de los Naufragios de Wisconsin (Grandes Lagos)

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Divers know better than anyone the wonder national marine sanctuaries hold because they can immerse themselves in the splendor. But you can also enjoy the experience without getting wet. NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries has cataloged its underwater resources with 360-degree videos that allow users to swim along for the ride with top to bottom control of the view. The series follows playful sea lions in Monterey Bay, sea turtles in Hawai‘i, and coral outplant practitioners in the Florida Keys, among others. The videos and static, 360-degree images are within reach at sanctuaries. noaa.gov/vr/.