Stellwagen Bank Final EIS and Management Plan 



Page 134 



for the entire Gulf of Maine, and has implemented 

 pilot monitoring studies. Stellwagen Bank is 

 included within this large general area. 



While these management initiatives are highly 

 worthwhile, under the status quo alternative there 

 would be no particular focus on management of the 

 Bank system; nor would there be established any 

 opportunities for local and regional involvement in 

 these efforts by those either directly or indirectly 

 dependent on the Bank's resources. As with 

 research and education/ interpretation programs, 

 therefore, it may be generally anticipated that the 

 status quo alternative (i.e., no Stellwagen Bank 

 management program), may result in gradual 

 deterioration or diminishment of the Bank's 

 resources. 



B. Sanctuarv Designation: The Preferred 

 Alternative 



Designation of the Stellwagen Bank National 

 Marine Sanctuary will permit the implementation of 

 a coordinated and comprehensive management 

 scheme, resulting in the most efficient means of 

 protecting the resources of the Stellwagen Bank 

 system. System-wide resource protection will be 

 promoted by Sanctuary designation in three ways: 1) 

 existing regulatory and resource protection 

 mechanisms will be enhanced, and resource 

 protection gaps filled; 2) a coordinated research 

 program will be established to expand current 

 knowledge of the Stellwagen Bank system, thus 

 providing the foundation for sound management; 

 and 3) a broad-based education/interpretive 

 program will be established to improve pubUc 

 understanding and appreciation of the importance 

 of the Stellwagen Bank system as habitat for a 

 nationally-significant community of marine 

 organisms providing important livelihoods; and of 

 the need for a comprehensive management 

 framework to ensure the future of this habitat. 



The highly-productive, yet relatively unspoiled 

 environment of the Stellwagen Bank is unique, given 

 its proximity to several points of access, and the 

 relatively high levels of human activities. The 

 Stellwagen Bank area supports a variety of 

 important human activities: a large commercial 

 fishing industry and commercial whalewatching 



industry, shipping, scientific research, education, and 

 recreation. Although the historic level of these 

 activities has not been intense, in recent years these 

 and other new planned human activities have begun 

 to indicate potential conflicts and adverse impacts 

 on the area's natural resources. Possible 

 development activities, such as extraction of sand 

 and gravel resources from the Bank feature itself, 

 have posed particular threats to the continued 

 vitality of the overall system. Also of concern are 

 the possible long-term consequences to living 

 resources of habitat degradation from activities such 

 as dredged materials disposal operations. 



The preferred boundary alternative is 

 particularly appropriate for two reasons: it 

 encompasses identified important habitats, including 

 the entirety of the Stellwagen Bank feature, Tillies 

 Bank, and portions of Jeffreys Ledge, which 

 collectively support them; and it is immediately 

 adjacent to the boundaries of the Cape Cod Bay, 

 Cape Cod, and North Shore Ocean Sanctuaries, 

 already designated as protected areas by the 

 Commonwealth. The latter factor enhances the 

 potential for Federal-State coordination in working 

 toward effective ocean system management. The 

 Commonwealth of Massachusetts has long 

 recognized the importance of establishing long-term 

 and comprehensive management for coastal areas 

 and offshore areas subject to increasing pressures 

 from humjm activities. To that end, the 

 Commonwealth established its Ocean Sanctuaries 

 Program, to provide the mechanism for such 

 management. Although the Stellwagen Bank system 

 is uniformly recognized as an especially productive 

 area from which many residents make a living, it 

 occurs outside the boundaries of Commonwealth 

 jurisdiction, thus exposing it to the potentially 

 adverse effects of imcontroUed human activities. 



Designation of the Stellwagen Bank National 

 Marine Sanctuary will allow NOAA to: 1) assist in 

 coordinating activities undertaken by existing 

 authorities (such as the Ocean Sanctuaries 

 Program); 2) support and coordinate research on 

 and monitoring of Bank resources; 3) enhance 

 pubUc awareness of and appreciation for the value 

 and sensitivity of the Bank system; 4) formulate 

 long-range plans for responding to currently 

 unforeseen threats to the Bank system; and 5) 



