In advance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the U.S., the federal government announced a new national marine sanctuary off the coast of California that will be co-managed with tribes and Indigenous groups in the area.
The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sactuary will be the third-largest federally protected stretch of water, encompassing more than 11,600 square kilometers (4,500 square miles) of ocean along 186 km (116 mi) of California coastline. The new marine sanctuary is at the confluence of warm southern currents and cold northern currents, which together provide habitat for a wide variety of wildlife, including migrating whales, sea turtles and sea otters. The region boasts a variety of diverse ecosystems including kelp forests, sandy beaches, underwater mountains and rocky reefs.
The sanctuary will be co-managed among the government, which will provide additional monitoring and scientific research, and local tribal peoples who will provide technical expertise and traditional knowledge.
“Being able to address climate change, use traditional ecological knowledge, and participate in co-management is Indigenous peoples’ contribution to saving the planet,” Violet Sage Walker told NPR. Walker is chairwoman of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, which led the campaign for the sanctuary more than a decade ago. Walker’s father spearheaded the effort; she said it was his dying wish to see the area protected.
“This designation will forever protect this part of the ocean from oil and gas drilling and create the staging ground for valuable science to study our ocean in a changing climate,” Laura Deehan, Environment California state director, said in a statement.
As a marine sanctuary, the area will be off-limits for oil and gas drilling as well as mining, though fishing will still be permitted. Initially proposed to cover more than 18,000 km2 (7,000 mi2), the sanctuary’s size was reduced to accommodate an upcoming offshore wind farm. Although floating wind turbines will be outside the sanctuary, the original plan included energy transfer cables that would run through the protected area. The sanctuary was downsized to accommodate the cables, but once they are laid, the government and the wind companies have said they will begin conversations about expanding the sanctuary to the originally proposed size.
Government officials, NGOs and local tribes are celebrating the compromise.
“Our elder, Pilulaw, who has passed into spirit, she said that if you want to pray, you should put your feet in the water, because the water will take your prayers all over the whole world,” Walker said, adding, “we’re praying for a better world. We’re praying that what we’re doing is going to make a difference.”
The new designation is expected to officially go into effect in December.
Banner image: Humpback whales rely on healthy habitats like the newly created Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. Photo courtesy of Robert Schwemmer/NOAA.