Southern sea otters (a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act) groom, sleep and often roll in the water to wrap themselves in kelp between time spent feeding in a part of Morro Bay through which infrastructure may be built to connect proposed offshore wind turbines with the mainland in Morro Bay, California. The MY Arctic Sunrise travelled to Morro Bay with members of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and allies to support the federal designation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. Upon designation, the proposed new protected area will be the first U.S. National Marine Sanctuary nominated by Indigenous people and would protect the ancestral waters of the Chumash and other tribes of coastal California. Greenpeace also supports co-management of the new sanctuary between the US government and California’s coastal tribes.

WASHINGTON (June 11, 2026) — In response to the Trump administration’s decision to reopen the last three marine national monuments in Papahānaumokuākea, the Mariana Trench, and Rose Atoll to commercial fishing, John Hocevar, Greenpeace USA Programs Director, said: “As the World Cup begins, Trump has scored yet another “own goal,” undermining the security of America’s fishing industry and rolling back ocean protections that are working well. Last week, he stunned scientists by pledging to spend millions of dollars to remove a state-of-the-art ocean-monitoring system that Americans already paid for, which has been delivering world-class results — including benefits for fishers. Now he wants to open up three Pacific National Monuments to commercial fisheries, knowing full well that this will trigger more lawsuits against his shortsighted and ill-conceived assaults on science and common sense.

“Our national parks and monuments are part of what makes America great. Maybe it is because this president is more at home on a private golf course that he treats these magnificent places as just another cash cow to loot. Ocean sanctuaries like these are proven, cost-effective tools for rebuilding depleted fish populations, protecting biodiversity, and giving our oceans the resilience they need to withstand the impacts of climate change, plastic pollution, and other stresses.

Marine sanctuaries have proven benefits, including protecting marine biodiversity, supporting coastal economies, increasing resilience to change, and sustaining healthy, productive fisheries. Removing those protections doesn’t help fishers – it sacrifices their future for short-term gains.

“Trump destroys everything he touches. With the courts and the current Congress unwilling to hold him accountable, the mid-term elections will be the best chance we have to stop him from doing any more damage.” 

Contacts:

Tanya Brooks, Senior Communications Specialist at Greenpeace USA, [email protected]

Greenpeace USA Press Desk: [email protected] 

Greenpeace USA (Inc.) is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.