Now is the time – speak up for our Marine Sanctuary

Proponents of the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary will have to convince federal officials that their plan is deserving of continued consideration.  Since its submittal in 2015, the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary application has not progressed out of the “nomination” phase to the “designation” phase within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Now, NOAA is evaluating whether to continue reviewing the proposal for another five years or scrap it altogether.

The proposed Chumash sanctuary stretches 140 miles from Cambria to Santa Barbara, filling the gap of coastline between the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary. NOAA is accepting written public comments on the review until June 15.   Please add your voice to those who want to protect our coastline from oil exploration, mining, and industrial dumping.  You can easily send NOAA written comments online with this link.  Do it now – the deadline is June 15.  The Northern Chumash, the Sierra Club and Ecologistics thank you.