[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 128 (Thursday, September 20, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1581]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN HONOR OF THE NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 20, 2012

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to reflect on one of the most 
important pieces of federal legislation impacting our coastal, great 
lakes and ocean resources stretching from Fagatele Bay in American 
Samoa to the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary along the East Coast. 
The National Marine Sanctuaries Act, which was signed on October 23, 
1972, recognized the value of these national treasures; designating 
marine protected areas for current and future generations.
  40 years later, communities across the country have seen real 
dividends from these federal investments and are expressing their 
interests in protecting their own waters. Reactivation of NOAA's Site 
Evaluation List, a scientifically rigorous and publicly reviewed list 
of sites, is being considered as part of the Strategic Action Plan to 
implement our National Policy for the Stewardship of the Ocean, Our 
Coasts, and the Great Lakes. It would bring a renewed commitment to 
conserve, protect, and enhance the biodiversity, ecological integrity 
and cultural legacy of our nation's system of marine protected areas.
  In my experience, the most remarkable thing about the National Marine 
Sanctuary Program is the transformation which occurs when communities 
recognize they have the opportunity to become stewards of their local 
marine environment. I cannot emphasize enough that ours and future 
generations will increasingly depend on a healthy ocean--for 
ecological, economic, educational, scientific, social, cultural and 
recreational benefits, as well as for the food we eat. For me, the best 
example is the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which this year 
celebrates its 20th Anniversary.
  The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary emerged from a 
collaboration of local officials, civic minded citizens, 
environmentalists and many others who were concerned about the 
possibility of oil drilling on the Central Coast. Their hard work 
resulted in the establishment of the largest marine sanctuary in the 
Continental U.S. It goes down more than 2 miles and is almost as deep 
as the Rockies are tall. Its undersea mountain--``Davidson Seamount''--
is higher than any coastal mountain, 7480 ft. tall, and it supports one 
of the most bio-diverse ecosystems in the world.
  I am fortunate to represent a congressional district that has one of 
the greatest synergies of ocean science and research in the world. And 
it is through increased understanding of our marine sanctuaries that we 
become better stewards of our blue planet. The National Marine 
Sanctuary Program is charting the course forward through research and 
education and it is only fitting that, on this anniversary of the 
National Marine Sanctuaries Act, we in Congress commend the National 
Marine Sanctuaries Act and all of our nation's sanctuaries for their 
significant work in advancing understanding and protection of the 
world's oceans.

                          ____________________