Obama created a protected area in Hawaii spreading across half a million square miles. This is estimated to be the largest on the planet. The President of the United States is responsible for increase the size of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument by about four times to 582,578 square miles on both land and sea in the northwestern region of Hawaii. The moment was initiated by former President George W Bush about a decade back and the efforts taken by Obama goes to prove the significance given to the climate change and conservation issues.
The Antiquities Act of 1906 comes to the rescue of the president giving him the executive authority to protecting millions of acres of federal water and land. The environmentalists, natives of the island and scientists have supported the need for stringent protection for the biologically rich area, keeping in mind the deep water discoveries and the threat to climate and sea bed mining in the region. The ocean beds are also under threat due to climate change and there is an urgent need to protect the ocean from threats.
Obama declared in the official proclamation that the expansion is done in the public interest to safeguard the marine environment. In an effort to expand the monument, activities like fishing, deep sea mining and other extraction activities will be prohibited. But recreational fishing and collection of resources for the cultural and scientific purposes will be allowed. In an address, Obama highlighted this at the IUCN and Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders at Honolulu. He will also be traveling to Midway Atoll which is part of the monument.
It may be noted that the president established two dozen national monuments during his second term. Moreover, the Longline fishermen have lobbied against the new protections saying that they do not follow any damaging practices like trawling and need a solution to maintain their annual catch of $100 million.
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