President Bush to Announce Pacific Protection Zones

US President George W. Bush is set to announce the creation of a vast protection area in the Pacific Ocean, within which industrial fishing and mining will be prohibited from taking place. Once established, the conservation area, made up of three zones, will extend to 190,000 square miles, or 500,000 square kilometres, in total.

According to environmentalists, once made, Bush’s announcement will place him above all other global figures in terms of his ocean protection efforts.

The specific Pacific areas that the zones will cover include the Marianas Trench, which – at around 36,000 feet in depth – is famous as being the deepest Oceanic area on the planet.

Marine Conservation

Bush’s announcement on the marine conservation zones has not yet taken place but, via James Connaughton, Presidential environmental advisor, representatives of the media have been briefed on its content.

In his comments, Connaughton highlighted the global significance of the protection zones’ establishment, saying that the United States was “setting the mark for the world with respect to effective marine management”.

Apart from the Marianas Trench, other areas to be protected include islands sited great distances from civilisation and which, therefore, have been unaffected by large-scale fishing and its effects on the environment. Locations that, according to Connaughton, stand “among the last pristine areas in the marine environment on Earth.”

Commercial Fishing

While an outright ban will be enforced on commercial fishing, some degree of fishing for pleasure will still be permitted.

The commercial ban will be enforced up to 50 miles away from the shores of the zones in question, which are the Mariana Islands, Rose Atoll and a collection of so-called “Remote Islands”.

“The conservation action is going to benefit the public and future generations through enhanced science, knowledge and awareness, and just good old-fashioned inspiration, because these places are exceptionally dynamic when it comes to the marine environment”, Connaughton commented.