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Conservation Groups Welcome U. S. Pacific Islands Regional Ocean Partnership
Honolulu, Hawai`i - September 4,
2012. Governor Abercrombie's announcement of the signing of the
U.S. Pacific Islands Regional Ocean Partnership (PROP) agreement drew
praise from a group of conservation organizations that had recently
completed a workshop on the National Ocean Policy and the Hawai`i Ocean
Resources Management Plan. Joining Governor Abercrombie in signing the
Governors' Pacific Regional Ocean Partnership (PROP) agreement were the
Governors of the Territory of American Samoa, Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, and the Territory of Guam. According to
Hawai'i Office of Planning Director Jesse Souki, "The PROP creates a
structure for developing regional priorities and a framework for
collaboratively working with stakeholders such as local communities;
county, state and federal agencies; non-governmental organizations; and
the private sector." One of the major objectives of the PROP will be to
facilitate implementation of the priority objectives of the National
Ocean Policy.
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Facilitate the implementation of the priority objectives of the
President's Executive Order 13547 of July 19, 2010, which established
the National Ocean Policy;
"This is a very important step in implementing the National Ocean Policy
in the Pacific," said Dave Raney, Chair of the Sierra Club's national
Marine Action Team. "Although the U.S. Pacific Islands are widely
separated geographically, they share cultural bonds and have a history
of working together on challenges island peoples face. Adaptation to
climate change impacts is perhaps the most daunting challenge today, and
is a key National Ocean Policy objective. The PROP will promote sharing
of knowledge and resources to address those impacts."
Marjorie Ziegler, Director of Conservation Council of Hawai`i, said "On
August 18 we held our `Strengthening Marine Stewardship in Hawai`i'
workshop, and learned that efforts to form the PROP were underway in
American Samoa. We are pleased to learn those efforts were successful."
Linda Paul, Director of the Hawai`i Audubon Society, said "This is
welcome news. The PROP will help us take a regional approach to protect
our fisheries and other marine resources." Stuart Coleman, Director of
the Surfrider Foundation Chapters of Hawai`i said, "Marine debris,
especially from plastics, is an important concern throughout the Pacific
region. The PROP offers the opportunity to tackle marine debris as a
regional issue."
Workshop participants developed a set of consensus recommendations
regarding the updating of the Hawai`i Ocean Resources Management Plan,
and submitted them to the Hawai`i Coastal Zone Management Program on
August 31, 2012. The recommendations include revising the Ocean
Resources Management Plan to align with the objectives of the National
Ocean Policy.
Contacts:
Marjorie Ziegler
Conservation Council for Hawai`i
(808-593-0255)
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Linda Paul
Hawai`i Audubon Society
(808-262-6859)
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Dave Raney
Sierra Club
Marine Action Team
(808-734-4986)
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Stuart Coleman
Surfrider Foundation,
Hawai`i Chapters
(808-942-3841)
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