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Stop Commercial Fishing In A Fragile Marine Sanctuary

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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.

Fisher in orange waterproof gear removing a fish from tangled netting on a boat beside the water.

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.

More on this issue:

  1. Conservation Law Foundation (5 May 2026), "Environmental Nonprofits Sue Trump Administration to Protect Northeast Canyons and Seamounts."
  2. Natural Resources Defense Council (4 May 2026), "Conservation Law Foundation v. Trump 2026 Northeast Canyons defense."
  3. NOAA Fisheries (2026), "Commercial Fishing Allowed in Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument."
  4. Harvard Environmental & Energy Law Program (6 April 2026), "Marine National Monuments and Marine Sanctuaries."
  5. National Fisherman Staff, National Fisherman (6 May 2026), "Environmental groups sue over reopening of Northeast marine monument."
  6. White House (6 February 2026), "Unleashing American Commercial Fishing in the Atlantic."

The Petition

To the Commerce Secretary and NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator,

I urge you to restore full protections for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument and reinstate the ban on commercial fishing inside its boundaries.

The monument protects one of the most important ocean habitats in the U.S. Atlantic. Its deep-sea canyons, seamounts, corals, fish, marine mammals, seabirds, and other species make it a rare refuge in a heavily used ocean.

Commercial fishing is already allowed across vast areas of the Atlantic. A marine national monument should not be treated like ordinary fishing grounds. It was designated because some ocean places need stronger safeguards to protect fragile ecosystems that may take decades or longer to recover from damage.

The February 2026 proclamation reopening the monument to commercial fishing undermines the purpose of the designation. It exposes protected habitat to unnecessary risk and invites more legal uncertainty over a place that should be managed first for conservation.

Conservation organizations have sued to challenge the reopening. Their concern is justified. Deep-sea ecosystems are vulnerable, slow to recover, and difficult to monitor. Once corals, seafloor habitats, or ecological relationships are damaged, the harm may not be visible to the public but can last for years.

Please reverse course. Restore the commercial fishing ban in Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, direct NOAA Fisheries to manage the monument for conservation, and defend the legal protections that keep this ocean refuge intact.

The United States should lead in marine conservation, not weaken one of the few fully protected places in the Atlantic. Protecting this monument protects ocean life, scientific value, biodiversity, and the public interest.

Please keep commercial fishing out of Northeast Canyons and Seamounts.

Sincerely,

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