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Stop Commercial Fishing In A Fragile Marine Sanctuary
Final signature count: 126
126 signatures toward our 30,000 goal
Sponsor: Free The Ocean
Federal officials have reopened the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument protects to commercial fishing. Help protect this rare deep-sea habitat.
The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument protects a rare deep-sea landscape off the New England coast. It includes underwater canyons, seamounts, corals, marine mammals, seabirds, fish, and other ocean life across roughly 4,900 square miles.1
In February 2026, President Trump issued a proclamation opening the monument to commercial fishing. NOAA Fisheries later stated that commercial fishing is now allowed within the monument boundaries under Proclamation 11009.3
Conservation groups sued in May 2026 to challenge the move. Conservation Law Foundation says reopening the monument to commercial fishing would inflict long-term damage on unique natural resources without meaningful economic benefits.1
Deep Sea Ecosystems Need Strong Protection
The monument was created to safeguard fragile deep-sea habitat. Deep-sea corals and seamount ecosystems can grow slowly and recover slowly after disturbance. Commercial fishing can damage seafloor habitat, alter food webs, and increase pressure on species that depend on protected waters.
NRDC says the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts has survived repeated legal attacks and that the current case challenges another attempt to strip protections from the monument.2 Harvard’s Environmental & Energy Law Program tracks the rollback as part of a broader pattern of marine monument and sanctuary policy changes under the administration.4
SeafoodSource also reported that a coalition of conservation organizations launched a lawsuit after the administration reopened the monument to commercial fishing.5
Federal Officials Must Put Conservation First
The White House proclamation says the monument should be managed in a way that allows commercial fishing within its boundaries.6 But national monuments are set aside because certain places need stronger protection than ordinary use areas.
President Trump, the Department of Commerce, and NOAA Fisheries have authority over how this policy is implemented and defended. They should restore the commercial fishing ban, manage the monument for conservation, and protect the rare ocean habitat the designation was created to preserve.
Commercial fishing is already permitted across large portions of the ocean. The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument is a small but vital refuge. Once deep-sea habitat is damaged, recovery can take decades or longer.
Sign now to urge federal officials to restore full protections for Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument and keep commercial fishing out of this fragile ocean refuge.
