NOAA HOLDS
PUBLIC MEETINGS TO EVALUATE THE OPERATION OF STELLWAGEN BANK NATIONAL
MARINE SANCTUARY
September 17, 2002
NOAA 02-R433
Contact:
Anne Smrcina, 781-545-8026 x204
The National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced today it will
hold a series of public meetings throughout New England to help them
evaluate the regulations, boundaries, and strategies for the management
and operation of the Gerry E. Studds Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary. The meetings are part of the process by which the sanctuary
and the public evaluate sanctuary operations every five years. NOAA
is an agency of the Commerce Department.
Sanctuary
staff will hold the public scoping meetings in communities along the
New England coast, beginning in Mystic, Conn., Sept. 24, and ending
with a meeting in Plymouth, Mass., on Oct. 5. Scoping meetings provide
an opportunity for the public to make direct comments on issues related
to the region and management of the sanctuary's natural and cultural
resources, as well as overall sanctuary administration. The public comment
period will remain open until Oct. 18, 2002.
Public
Meeting Schedule:
Sept.
24 - Mystic, Conn., 7 p.m., Mystic Aquarium
Sept.
25 - New Bedford, Mass., 7 p.m., Whaling Museum, 18 Johnny Cake Hill
Sept.
26 - Provincetown, Mass., 7 p.m., Town Hall Aud., 260 Commercial St.
Sept.
28 - Falmouth, Mass., 10 a.m., Sea Education Assn, 177 Woods Hole Rd.
Sept.
30 - Gloucester, Mass., 7 p.m., Gloucester City Hall Council Ch., 9
Dale Ave.
Oct.
1 - Portland, Maine, 7 p.m., Univ. of Maine School of Law, 246 Deering
Ave.
Oct.
2 - Portsmouth, N.H., 7 p.m., Yokens Restaurant & Conference Center,
Rte. 1, S. 1390 Lafayette Rd.
Oct. 3
- Boston, Mass., 7 p.m., New England Aquarium, Central Wharf
Oct. 5
- Plymouth, Mass., 11 a.m., Plymouth Public Library, 132 South Street
In preparation
for the meetings, a State
of the Sanctuary report is available online or in hard copy at the
sanctuary office in Scituate, Mass. The report provides information
about the sanctuary, its significant accomplishments and the current
resource management issues of concern.
Congress
designated the Gerry E. Studds Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
in 1992 as "an area of special national significance." Virtually the
size of the state of Rhode Island, the sanctuary stretches between Cape
Ann and Cape Cod in federal waters off of Massachusetts. The sanctuary
is renowned as a major feeding area for marine mammals, particularly
humpback whales, and supports an ecosystem of diverse wildlife.
NOAA's
National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) seeks to increase the public
awareness of America's maritime heritage by conducting scientific research,
monitoring, exploration, and educational programs. Today, 13 national
marine sanctuaries encompass more than 18,000 square miles of America's
ocean and Great Lakes natural and cultural resources. In addition, the
NMSP is now conducting a sanctuary designation process to incorporate
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve into
the national sanctuary system. For more information about the Stellwagen
Bank National Marine Sanctuary, please visit http://stellwagen.nos.noaa.gov.
NOAA's
National Ocean Service (NOAA Ocean Service) manages the National Marine
Sanctuary Program and is dedicated to exploring, understanding, conserving,
and restoring the nation's coasts and oceans. NOAA Ocean Service balances
environmental protection with economic prosperity in fulfilling its
mission of promoting safe navigation, supporting coastal communities,
sustaining coastal habitats, and mitigating coastal hazards. To learn
more about NOAA Ocean Service and the National Marine Sanctuary Program,
please visit http://www.nos.noaa.gov.
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