This story has an almost cyclical quality that, if you’ve been watching it long enough, is almost predictable. Approximately 130 miles off Cape Cod, the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument is a 5,000-square-mile stretch of the Atlantic that has been opened, closed, and reopened to commercial fishing based almost entirely on the political party in power. The National Marine Fisheries Service of NOAA formally repealed the rule that prohibited commercial fishing in those waters last month, bringing federal regulations into compliance with President Trump’s executive proclamation ordering the agency to reopen the monument. It was a long-needed validation for the fishing industry. For conservationists, it was like witnessing the transfer of something priceless.
The monument itself is truly remarkable in the same way that things underwater often are: subtly dramatic, largely undetectable, and easily forgotten until someone poses a threat. Four underwater volcanoes are extinct. More than a mile below the surface of the ocean are three canyons. Alongside North Atlantic right whales, threatened sea turtles, and species that don’t exist in significant quantities anywhere else in the Atlantic are deep-sea corals that have been growing for centuries. According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, the location is “a living laboratory” where scientists can examine mostly undisturbed ocean ecosystems. It is now much more difficult to defend that designation.
Howard Lutnick, the Commerce Secretary, presented the ruling as one of respect for the economy. “Restoring fishing in the Northeast Monument sends a signal that our fishermen are valued in the United States,” he stated. Neil Jacobs, the NOAA Administrator, expressed similar optimism, speculating that the action would increase the amount of domestically caught fish available on American tables. Those arguments have real weight. Over 2.1 million jobs and $319 billion in national fishery sales were produced by U.S. commercial and recreational fisheries in 2023. These figures are significant enough that it would be unjust to write off the industry’s worries as solely self-serving. For years, commercial fishermen have maintained that the general ban was unnecessary because the monument region is already governed by the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which upholds sustainability standards.
However, it is difficult to ignore the fact that the decision has actual ecological implications. Gib Brogan, Senior Campaign Director for Oceana, cautioned that reopening the monument could harm deep-sea corals and put endangered species—such as the North Atlantic right whale, one of the world’s most critically endangered large mammals—closer to fishing operations. More bluntly, Brad Sewell of the Natural Resources Defense Council declared the proclamation illegal and expressed optimism that legal challenges would ensue. Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal referred to the monument as “a natural treasure” and vowed to continue his fight. Although this specific legal terrain has already been mapped once before—commercial fishing groups challenged Obama’s initial designation, and the case was rejected by an appeals court and declined by the Supreme Court—it remains to be seen if those challenges gain traction in court.
Both sides of the debate may be complicated by a 2022 study that revealed the monument’s closure had comparatively little discernible effect on fishing activity in the squid, mackerel, and tuna fisheries. The industry would contend that if the closure didn’t seriously harm fishing, it might not have had a significant positive impact on conservation either. It’s likely that the reality is more chaotic than either framing implies. Deep-sea ecosystems recover slowly, if at all, and long-term harm is still occurring even in the absence of striking short-term data.
Whether a legal challenge will be successful in overturning the proclamation this time is still up in the air. What is evident is that the Northeast Canyons monument has evolved into something of a political weather vane, gauging opinions not only about conservation and fishing rights but also about federal authority, executive power, and the true value that Americans place on protected areas. The fishing boats will go back to those waters. The true answer might lie in what they discover there ten years from now.
