Increased Protection for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

After 7 years of planning and extensive public input, three marine sanctuaries off Central California issued a new joint management plan. The plan includes a 775 square mile expansion to include the Davidson Seamount, one of the largest known underwater mountains in U.S. coastal waters and home to a wide variety of marine species, prohibition of harmful discharges from cruise ships, restoration of the original limitation of motorized personal watercraft to four areas off the harbors, inclusion of a wintertime zone for tow-in surfing at “Maverick’s”, and efforts to reduce the introduction of non-native species. Through the Joint Management Plan Review process, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary considered revisions and additions to its management plans, which created an opportunity to revisit the management of MPWC in the Sanctuary. The chapters along the Central California Coast participated in this process in hopes of affecting change to MPWC regulations.