Kalle Benallie
ICT
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a proposal to designate a 5,617-square-mile area offshore of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties in central California as Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. It would protect the area’s marine life, ecosystems, archaeological sites, and cultural sites.
It’s the first Indigenous-led nomination for a national marine sanctuary.
“We are excited to see the designation of the Chumash Heritage Sanctuary moving forward,” said Violet Sage Walker, sanctuary nominator and Northern Chumash Tribal Council chairwoman, in a press release. “We know the importance of protecting this vital stretch of ocean, for our marine life, our fishing and our cultural heritage. Sanctuaries uplift local participation in ocean management, and this sanctuary will put Indigenous communities in partnership with NOAA. The collective knowledge of the Central Coast’s First Peoples, as well as other local stakeholders, scientists, and policymakers, will create a strong foundation to have a thriving coast for generations to come.”
The Northern Chumash Tribal Council is organized as a non-profit corporation under the guidelines of the state of California Senate Bill 18.
The designation would advance the Biden-Harris administration’s America the Beautiful initiative, which is supporting locally led conservation efforts across the country with a goal to conserve and restore 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.
“The proposed sanctuary is rich in marine life and includes kelp forests, rocky shores, sandy beaches, a globally-significant ecological transition zone and important offshore features that have been important to Chumash and other Indigenous communities for more than 10,000 years,” said John Armor, director, NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. “The sanctuary would also enhance conservation of numerous rare and endangered species that depend on this area, including snowy plovers, black abalone, southern sea otters, blue whales and leatherback sea turtles.”
The agency’s proposed boundary for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary would stretch along 134 miles of coastline from Hazard Canyon Reef, south of Morro Bay, to an area just south of Dos Pueblos Canyon — the site of one of the largest historical Chumash villages along the Gaviota Coast. The northern region is also home to the sacred Chumash site Lisamu’, known as Morro Rock.
The NOAA said they will continue to seek local area tribes and Indigenous communities’ assistance and input through the designation process. In the proposal tribal and Indigenous community members would have opportunities to join in sanctuary decision-making processes and cultural programming through the sanctuary’s advisory council, working groups of the advisory council, a new Intergovernmental Policy Council and joint project agreements.
The sanctuary off the central coast could also generate $23 million in economic activity and 600 new jobs, according to a 2014 report.
The Northern Chumash Tribal Council began the work to create the sanctuary a decade ago when former chairman Fred Collins worked with local environmental activists to prepare a sanctuary nomination. It was crafted based on an earlier proposal from the 1980s from state and local leaders, but the new proposal envisioned coupling NOAA’s standard sanctuary management framework with Indigenous knowledge.
The final nomination was submitted in July 2015 and renewed in 2020. Then in November 2021, the NOAA announced that the nomination would be considered for designation. Collins died Oct. 1. His daughter, Violet Sage Walker, also worked closely on the project and now leads the tribal council and sanctuary campaign.
Public comment to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will be accepted for 60 days, ending on Oct. 25. They may be submitted via the Federal Register through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. The docket number is NOAA-NOS-2021-0080. Other methods for comment can be in a NOAA hearing or through the mail addressed to:
Paul Michel
NOAA Sanctuaries West Coast Regional Office
99 Pacific Street, Building 100F, Monterey, CA 93940
More information on how to submit a comment is here.
In addition, the administration will host two in-person and one virtual public comment meetings as well as two in-person informational workshops and one virtual informational webinar approximately two weeks in advance to facilitate public understanding. Detailed information for the public meetings is here.
A final action on designation is expected in the middle of 2024.
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