On Friday, February 6, President Trump revoked the ban on commercial activities in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts National Marine Monument, allowing regulated fishing operations in the protected waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
In his announcement, Trump emphasized that commercial fishing conducted under proper regulations serves the public interest. He also cited existing federal laws that fully protect the ecosystem of the region.
The announcement stated that laws such as the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act provide sufficient protection for sustainable fishing practices and the preservation of marine species, negating the need for a blanket ban.
According to the statement, “After further review of the nature of the objects defined in Proclamation 9496 and the protections provided by federal laws for these objects, I have determined that properly managed commercial fishing activities will not endanger the historically or scientifically significant objects protected within the monument.”
The latest announcement reversed the restrictions on fishing in the monument imposed by former President Biden in 2021. This approximately 4,913 square mile monument is located at the intersection of the New England offshore continental shelf and the Atlantic Ocean, established in 2016 under Proclamation 9496 issued by former President Obama.
President Trump made adjustments to the monument in 2020, rescinding the fishing ban enacted by Obama in 2016 under the Antiquities Act. Obama designated the area as a monument to protect deep-sea canyons, seamounts, and associated marine life, including highly migratory fish species and rare corals.
In the latest announcement, Trump pointed out that most of the fish species within the monument are not unique to the region, and are managed by the Regional Fishery Management Council based on scientific data. Additionally, other regulations such as the Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, and Clean Water Act provide additional safeguards for wildlife, habitats, and water quality.
Trump’s latest move rescinds Biden’s Proclamation 10287, which imposed restrictions on fishing in the monument in 2021, and reinstates the provisions of Proclamation 10049 issued by Trump in 2020, lifting the relevant restrictions put in place during Biden’s term.
The latest announcement by President Trump states that the boundaries of the monument remain unchanged, but the management will follow the proclamation issued by Trump in 2020, allowing commercial activities to operate under existing regulations.
The announcement emphasizes that the Antiquities Act requires the monument boundaries to be the “smallest area compatible with proper care and management of the objects to be protected.”
Environmental groups have long supported the fishing ban in the monument, arguing that these measures can protect vulnerable species from the impacts of industrial activities.
In 2019, the Federal Appeals Court ruled against fishing industry groups, upholding Obama’s designation of regulations that prohibited commercial fishing and resource extraction activities in the monument to protect whales, sea turtles, fish, and deep-sea corals.