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What
is the Monument?
1.
What is the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands Marine National Monument and
how was it created?
2.
Does the Monument include both marine and
terrestrial habitats?
3.
How will the federal and state governments
interact to manage the Monument?
4.
How does the establishment of the Monument
affect the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve?
5.
How does the establishment of the Monument
affect the two National Wildlife Refuges?
6.
How does the establishment of the Monument
affect State lands and waters?
7.
How does the establishment of the Monument
affect the sanctuary designation process?
8.
When do the provisions of the Monument take
effect?
Importance of NWHI
9.
Where
are the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
(NWHI)?
10.
What is special about the
NWHI?
11.
What activities currently occur in
the NWHI?
12.
What are the primary ecosystem threats
for the NWHI?
Monument Features
13.
What is the size of the Monument?
14.
What is the area of coral reef habitat
within the
Monument?
15.
What are the Special Preservation
Areas and why were they created?
16.
What are the areas of the Special
Preservation Areas and the Ecological
Reserves?
Access
to the Monument
17.
Does this designation mean I can still take my recreational
vessel to the NWHI to dive or fish?
18.
How does the Monument impact ecotourism or other business
opportunities?
19.
Are Native Hawaiian practices allowed to continue in
the Monument?
20.
Is commercial fishing allowed in the Monument?
21.
What is a vessel monitoring system (VMS) and who needs
one to enter the Monument?
22.
Does the Proclamation prohibit vessels legally fishing
for bottomfish/pelagics from anchoring in the Monument?
Access
to the Monument
23.
Has a management plan been developed for the Monument and
if so can I review it?
24.
Will the Monument have a citizens’ advisory council
similar to the Reserve Advisory Council (RAC)?
What
is the Monument?
1.
What is the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
Marine National Monument and how was
it created?
The Northwestern
Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument
is the largest single fully protected area
in the United States and is the world’s largest fully protected
marine area. It was created by President Bush under the authorities
given to him in the Antiquities
Act, 16 U.S.C. §§ 431-433.
Creation of the Monument was
based on extensive public input, including
hearings and the involvement of a broad
spectrum of stakeholders and interested persons,
gained when the same area was being considered
for designation as a marine sanctuary.
Nearly 52,000 public comments were received,
the majority of which supported strong
protection of NWHI.
Based upon this extensive public input and in order
to provide additional immediate
protection to the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands, the Monument was created on
June 15, 2006, by Presidential Proclamation 8031. National Monument
status ensures the immediate, comprehensive,
strong, and lasting
protection of the resources of
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
(top)
2. Does the Monument include both marine
and terrestrial habitats?
Yes. The Monument includes all federally
owned or controlled emergent and
submerged lands of the Northwestern
Hawaiian Islands and the waters that surround and lie atop them.
The outer boundaries of the Monument
were established by the map and coordinates appended to the Proclamation,
and include marine waters in the
NWHI extending out approximately
50 miles on both sides of the chain
of islands. The terrestrial habitats
within the Monument are part of the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife
Refuge, established by President
Theodore Roosevelt, or the Midway
National Wildlife, established in 1996 by transfer from the Navy.
(top)
3.
How will the federal and state
governments interact to manage the
Monument?
The three principal entities with responsibility for managing lands and waters
of the Monument – National Oceanic and Atmospheric administration (NOAA),
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the State of Hawaii (collectively,
the Co-trustees) - are working cooperatively and will consult to administer the
Monument. The Co-trustees have established a goal to provide unified management
in the spirit of cooperative conservation. This relationship will be further
described in a Memorandum of Agreement among the Co-trustees. The Proclamation
provides that the Co-trustees shall work cooperatively to develop a management
plan for the region, based upon the draft management plan developed during the
sanctuary designation process. The management plan will include provisions for
coordinated permitting, research, education, enforcement, cultural practices
and other management related activities. NOAA, the USFWS and the State of Hawaii
already work closely to manage resources in this area under a memorandum of agreement
signed on May 19, 2006. This agreement will remain in effect. As directed by
the Proclamation, NOAA, the USFWS and the State of Hawaii will work to update
the agreement as necessary to reflect the provisions of the Proclamation.
(top)
4. How does the establishment of
the Monument affect the Northwestern
Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem
Reserve?
Executive Orders 13178 (December 4, 2000) and 13196 (January 18, 2001) established
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve (Reserve) to be
managed by NOAA, and identified the principal purpose of the Reserve as the conservation
and protection of the NWHI in its natural character. In addition, the Executive
Orders called for the initiation of a process to designate the Reserve as a national
marine sanctuary that would supplement and complement the Reserve, as well as
the long-term protections provided by the two National Wildlife Refuges and State
lands and waters that the Reserve surrounds.
Although
the Monument encompasses the areas protected by the Reserve and
provides a higher level of protection,
the National Marine Sanctuaries Amendments Act
of 2000 and the Executive Orders establishing the Reserve remain in effect.
NOAA staff will also manage the Reserve, in consultation with USFWS
and the State
of Hawaii.
(top)
5.
How does the establishment of
the Monument affect the two National
Wildlife Refuges?
The two refuges are part of the Monument and will be managed in close coordination
with NOAA and the State. They remain as National Wildlife Refuges, managed in
accordance with the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act and the
provisions of the Proclamation.
(top)
6.
How does the establishment of the Monument
affect State lands and waters?
The Proclamation specifically states “nothing in this proclamation shall
be deemed to diminish or enlarge the jurisdiction of the State of Hawaii.” The
State of Hawaii will continue to work in partnership as a Co-trustee with the
USFWS and NOAA to manage those lands and waters under its jurisdiction.
(top)
7.
How does the establishment of the Monument affect the sanctuary
designation process?
The National Marine Sanctuaries Amendments Act (NMSAA) and the Executive Orders
establishing the Reserve directed the Secretary of Commerce to take action to
initiate the designation of the Reserve as a National Marine Sanctuary, in order
to ensure the comprehensive, strong, and lasting protection of the resources
of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The Secretary of Commerce did initiate
designation of the Reserve as a national marine sanctuary. The Monument provides
the level of protection envisioned by the draft sanctuary proposal; therefore
NOAA is not pursuing sanctuary designation for the area but is instead focusing
on management of the Monument in the spirit of cooperative conservation with
their co-trustees. As a result, a draft Management Plan will be released addressing
the management requirements of the Monument. A draft Plan will be issued to the
public in several releases over the course of 2006/2007.
(top)
8.
When do the provisions of the Monument take effect?
The Presidential Proclamation that established the Monument has the full force
and effect of law. The provisions of the Proclamation were therefore effective
immediately upon issuance of the Proclamation on June 15, 2006. Joint regulations
codifying the provisions were published in the Federal Register on August 29,
2006, (71 Federal Register 51134) and are also in effect.
(top)
Importance of NWHI
9. Where are the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands?
The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
are a chain of small islands, atolls,
submerged banks, and reefs in the
central North Pacific Ocean. They
begin approximately 115 nautical
miles (140 miles) northwest of the
main Hawaiian Islands, and extend
northwest for more than 950 nautical
miles (1,200 miles). This vast archipelago
is mostly uninhabited and
is surrounded by some of the
most extensive and healthy coral
reefs in U.S. waters. The coral reefs
are part of a unique marine ecosystem
found nowhere else on Earth. The
reefs and related ecosystems include
a diverse variety of habitats
extending seaward from the archipelago's
shorelines.
(top)
10. What is special about the NWHI?
The healthiest and least disturbed
coral reefs in U.S. waters are found
in the NWHI. The NWHI ecosystem includes approximately 3,910 square
nautical miles (5,178 square miles)
of coral reef habitat with a diverse
and unique assemblage of fish, invertebrates, birds, sea turtles,
marine mammals and other species.
The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
include a much greater diversity of reef habitats than the main Hawaiian
Islands, and provide vital
habitat to a variety of federally
protected species. These include the threatened green sea turtle,
over 14 million seabirds, endangered
land birds and plants, and several
species of marine mammals, including the endangered Hawaiian monk
seal.
Numerous
archaeological artifacts found on two
of the islands reveal a close relationship with the Hawaiian
culture, with evidence of both prehistoric
seasonal and permanent settlements, as well as use of
the
area for religious purposes. Some
of the religious sites resemble those
found elsewhere in the Marquesas and Tahiti, possibly indicating
a
link to early Polynesian cultures.
The more recent history of the islands
is one of both commercial
and
military usage for a range of purposes,
from pearl oyster harvest and fishing
to guano mining, which wrought significant
changes in topography, flora and fauna.
This
area is also the site of one
of the oldest National Wildlife
Refuges, the Hawaiian Islands
National Wildlife Refuge, designated in 1909 by President Theodore
Roosevelt.
The area was also the site of
the Battle of Midway, a pivotal World
War II battle that occurred near
Midway Atoll. The Monument overlays
the NWHI Coral Reef Ecosystem
Reserve, Midway Atoll National Wildlife
Refuge, Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife
Refuge, Kure Atoll State Wildlife Sanctuary, and the NWHI
State Marine Refuge.
(top)
11. What activities currently occur
in the NWHI?
Some of the activities currently occurring in the NWHI include a
small commercial bottomfish/pelagic fishery
that is active in federal waters of the NWHI, and will be allowed
to continue for no longer
than five years. The NWHI coral reef ecosystem
is also the site of ongoing scientific and monitoring activities to
explore, map and better
understand the unique ecosystem. Research
and monitoring activities on terrestrial areas have created some of
the longest term and most
complete seabird databases in the world.
These efforts are often joint projects among many partners, including
NOAA, USFWS, Hawaii Department
of Land and Natural Resources, the University
of Hawaii, and others.
Co-trustee agencies are authorized to issue
permits for a variety of other activities
in the Monument, including research and monitoring, Native Hawaiian
practices, education, special
ocean use (activities engaged in to generate
revenue or profits that do not destroy,
cause the loss of, or injure
Monument resources),
recreation, and conservation and management.
(top)
12. What are the primary ecosystem
threats for the NWHI?
Human activities are the cause of
many of the threats to the ecosystem
of the NWHI. These include, among others, vessel groundings, pollution
from ships and other vessels,
derelict fishing gear, derelict military
and commercial infrastructure, land development, the introduction
of alien species, and research
and ecotourism impacts. Other causes
for concern include fishing, marine mammal entanglement in derelict
fishing gear, toxic materials
in the environment, and impacts from
fluctuations and the rise in ocean temperature.
Ocean
currents have deposited thousands
of tons of marine debris and derelict
fishing gear from the North Pacific
onto the islands, atolls, and reefs of
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. The nets and lines can
entangle
and drown monk seals, sea turtles,
and seabirds, as well as scour coral
reefs. Floating plastic debris is eaten by adult albatross
and fed to their young, often with
fatal effects. Marine debris is also
thought to be a potential conduit
for the accelerated introduction
of alien species to coral reef
ecosystems.
Some
additional threats to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands include
natural processes such
as
major winter storms,
periodic hurricanes, and tidal
waves. In the mid-1970s to late
1980s, changing oceanographic conditions
(decadal shift) may have caused
the islands' biological productivity
to decrease, affecting food availability
for some of the resident animals.
(top)
Monument Features
13.
What is the size of the Monument?
The Monument encompasses approximately
105,564 square nautical miles (139,797 square miles) of emergent and
submerged lands and waters of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
(top)
14. What is the area of coral reef
habitat within the Monument?
Current mapping efforts estimate
that coral reef habitat covers approximately 3,910 square nautical
miles (5,178 square miles).
(top)
15.
What are Special Preservation Areas
and why were they created?
Special Preservation Areas (SPAs)
are discrete, biologically important areas of the Monument. Uses
within SPAs are subject to conditions, restrictions, and prohibitions,
including but not limited to access restrictions. SPAs are used
to avoid concentrations of uses that could result in declines in
species populations or habitats, to reduce conflicts between uses,
to protect areas that are critical for sustaining important marine
species or habitats, or to provide opportunities for scientific
research.
(top)
16.
What are the areas of the Special Preservation
Areas and the Ecological Reserves?
The Special Preservation Areas cover
a total area of 5,136 square nautical miles (6,802 square miles),
including the 698 square nautical mile (924 square mile) Midway Atoll
Special Management Area. The Ecological Reserves cover a total of
28,512 square nautical miles (37,762 square miles).
(top)
Access
to the Monument
17. Does this designation mean I can
still take my recreational vessel to the
NWHI to dive or fish?
Under the Proclamation, these are considered
recreational activities. The Midway Atoll Special Management Area
is the only area where recreational activities may be permitted. A
recreation permit may be issued for a number of non-extractive activities
in that area. These activities are conducted for personal enjoyment
and cannot result in the extraction of monument resources or involve
a fee-for-service transaction. Recreational fishing is prohibited
throughout the Monument.
(top)
18.
How does the Monument impact ecotourism
or other business opportunities?
A special ocean use permit may be
granted for ocean-based ecotourism. The findings, criteria, and requirements
associated with issuance of special ocean use permits ensure comprehensive
protection of the resources and habitats of the NWHI. Special ocean
uses outside of the Midway Atoll Special Management Area may not involve
the use of commercial passenger vessels.
(top)
19.
Are Native Hawaiian practices allowed
to continue in the Monument?
Native Hawaiian practices may be authorized within the Monument through a Native
Hawaiian practices permit. A permit for Native Hawaiian practices cannot be issued
unless it satisfies criteria set forth in the Proclamation, including:
a.
The activity is noncommercial and will
not involve the sale of any organism or material
collected;
b.
The purpose and intent of the activity
are appropriate and deemed necessary by traditional standards
in the Native Hawaiian culture (pono),
and demonstrate
an understanding of, and background in, the traditional practice, and its
associated values and protocols;
c.
The activity benefits the resources of
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and the Native Hawaiian community;
d.
The activity supports or advances the
perpetuation of traditional knowledge
and ancestral connections of Native
Hawaiians to the Northwestern Hawaiian
Islands; and
e.
Any monument resource harvested from
the monument will be consumed in the
Monument.
(top)
20.
Is commercial fishing allowed in the
Monument?
The Proclamation provides that commercial fishing for bottomfish and associated
pelagic species by existing permittees may continue for no longer than 5 years.
No other commercial fishing is allowed within the Monument. Fishing will continue
to be managed by NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service until June 15,
2011, consistent with the Proclamation and other applicable laws and regulations.
The proclamation includes several other restrictions, including the limit on
total annual landings at 350,000 pounds for bottomfish species and 180,000 pounds
for pelagic species.
(top)
21.
What is a vessel monitoring system (VMS)
and who needs one to enter the Monument?
A Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) is a satellite-based tracking system, approved
by NOAA Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement (NOAA OLE). It is used for vessel
monitoring and automatically transmits the vessel’s position and other
inputted data from a transmitter onboard the vessel via satellite to NOAA OLE.
The Proclamation requires the use of a properly installed, type-approved, and
operational VMS unit on all permitted vessels operating within the Monument.
NOAA OLE published a notice of approved vessel monitoring systems in the Federal
Register on July 14, 2006 (71 Federal Register 40080).
(top)
22.
Does the Proclamation prohibit vessels
legally fishing for bottomfish/pelagics
from anchoring in the Monument?
The Proclamation prohibits anchoring on live or dead coral, except as necessary
to respond to emergencies threatening life, property, or the environment. Given
the distance from the Main Hawaiian Islands, the small size of the permitted
fishing vessels, and the small number of crew typically on board such vessels,
anchoring could be necessary to respond to weather conditions, currents, or other
variables that could threaten life, property or the environment.
(top)
Management Plan
23.
Has a management plan been developed
for the Monument and if so can I review
it?
The Co-trustees
(NOAA, USFWS and the State of Hawaii)
are jointly developing a Monument Management
Plan. The Plan will be based upon the
draft sanctuary management plan developed
during the sanctuary designation process
and draws on the extensive public and
agency comments submitted during that
process. A draft Plan will be issued
to the public in several releases over
the course of 2006 and 2007.
(top)
24.
Will the Monument have a citizens’ advisory council similar
to the Reserve Advisory Council (RAC)?
The Co-trustees will work together over the course of the next year
to determine the appropriate mechanisms to engage the public and stakeholder
groups for purposes of the Monument. The Co-trustees recognize that
a participatory process and engagement contributes to strong stakeholder
involvement and buy-in in the management of the Monument.
(top)
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