The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary took a big step closer to designation on Friday.
The National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration has submitted the final rule and management plan to the Federal Register — kick-starting a state review process that will likely end with the designation of the sanctuary.
If designated, the sanctuary will protect more than 4,500 square miles of the Pacific Ocean off the coastlines of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, according to the final rule.
“This is a huge win for the ocean, for climate change, for tribal stewardship and for creating a better world for us all,” Northern Chumash Tribal Councilwoman Violet Sage Walker said.
The purpose of the sanctuary is to protect marine ecosystems, shipwrecks and underwater Chumash cultural and historic sites off the Central Coast. Offshore oil drilling and certain sea floor disturbances will be prohibited in the sanctuary.
This is the first tribal nominated national marine sanctuary in the United States.
The late Northern Chumash Tribal Council Chief Fred Collins originally nominated the sanctuary in 2015. The council and Walker, who is Collins’ daughter, carried on his work.
“He would have been so happy — off-the-charts happy,” Walker said of her father. “There’s a lot of things that I miss about him, but today is a day I wish I could have shared with him.”
While NOAA will be the lead agency managing the sanctuary, the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and other Native American tribes will be included as co-stewards on numerous governing boards.
“To see this happen not only affirms our commitment to being part of the change and protecting Mother Earth, but also affirms that our people are still here, still a vibrant community, still thriving,” Walker said. “People will know our history and our stories.”
The final rule and management plan is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Wednesday. Once the documents are published there, the state of California has 45 days to review them.
If Gov. Gavin Newsom does not object to the sanctuary boundaries or management plan, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo will officially designate the sanctuary after the 45-day review period — likely by mid-December.
“The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary has been a twinkle in the eye of the Central Coast for more than a generation,” Congressman Salud Carbajal said in a news release. “Today, that long-held idea of creating a marine sanctuary off the Central Coast finally becomes reality.”
NOAA lays groundwork for expanding the sanctuary
The sanctuary boundaries chosen by NOAA will protect 4,543 square miles of the Pacific Ocean.
If designated, the sanctuary will stretch across 116 miles of shoreline from just south of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in San Luis Obispo County to Naples Reef on the Gaviota Coast in Santa Barbara County.
See the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary from the air. ‘It’s pretty special’
It spans westward 60 miles to catch geologic features like Rodriguez Seamount, Arguello Canyon and Santa Lucia Bank. The sanctuary reaches a maximum depth of 11,580 feet below sea level.
The proposed boundaries are slightly smaller than what was initially proposed.
In 2015, the Northern Chumash Tribal Council suggested a sanctuary design that started at the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and extended north to meet the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
This design would have protected about 7,600 square miles of the Pacific Ocean and created a contiguous strip of national marine sanctuaries on the California coast.
NOAA, however, shortened the northern boundary to allow for the development of underwater cables that would carry electricity generated by offshore wind turbines in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area to shore.
The final sanctuary management plan identified three areas that were excluded from the sanctuary: waters from Cambria to Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, the Morro Bay Estuary and deeper waters west of the outer boundary.
The management plan requires NOAA to start exploring options to expand protections of those areas by January 2032.
To grant sanctuary status to those waters, NOAA could expand the boundaries of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary or the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary or designate a new national marine sanctuary, the final management plan said.
“It is important to clarify that inclusion of this Boundary Adjustment Action Plan does not mean NOAA has decided to expand the sanctuary,” the plan said. “Rather, this action plan sets the stage for NOAA to decide if pursuing such a change is warranted.”
In order to expand either sanctuary or designate a new one, NOAA would initiate a separate public comment period, prepare an environmental impact report and conduct interagency and tTribal consultations, the management plan said.
While the Northern Chumash Tribal Council originally preferred the larger boundaries, it agreed to the smaller sanctuary to ensure that it would be designated sooner rather than later, Walker told The Tribune in September.
Still, the Northern Chumash Tribal Council will continue to advocate for the health of the environment in Morro Bay.
“Just because Morro Bay is not inside the boundaries does not mean we have agreed to check out,” Walker said in September. “We will be even more actively participating to make sure things go well with offshore wind.”
Carbajal pledged to continue working with local groups and federal agencies to implement the sanctuary.
“The historic designation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary comes not a moment too soon,” he said in a news release. “As our oceans and communities (face) unprecedented challenges from a changing marine environment, this new sanctuary comes at a critical time for our region.”
