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Trump lifts commercial fishing bans across nearly half a ...

“Trump lifts commercial fishing bans across nearly half a million square miles of protected Pacific waters. The June 11 proclamation affects three marine national monuments: Papahānaumokuākea near Hawaii, Rose Atoll near American Samoa and the Islands Unit of the Mariana Trench monument. These are not ordinary fishing grounds. Papahānaumokuākea alone contains nearly 7,000 known marine species, about one-quarter of which are found nowhere else. Its waters provide feeding, nesting and nursery habitat for Hawaiian monk seals, sea turtles, whales and millions of seabirds. The area is also sacred to Native Hawaiians, who regard it as an ancestral environment and a place where life begins and spirits return after death. The White House says removing the bans will increase domestic seafood production, support fishing jobs and reduce dependence on imports. It argues that existing laws can protect marine life while allowing regulated fishing. Only U.S.-flagged vessels will be permitted to fish commercially. Catch limits, gear restrictions and protections under laws such as the Endangered Species Act will continue to apply. Some waters closest to islands and reefs also remain closed. Fishing groups supporting the change say highly migratory species such as tuna do not remain inside monument boundaries and can be harvested sustainably under federal management. Conservationists disagree. They argue that fishing-free areas give species places to reproduce and recover while protecting sharks, turtles, seabirds and marine mammals from accidental capture. Removing large predators can also trigger changes that spread through the entire food web. Some Indigenous leaders fear the benefits will flow mainly to corporations with large vessels rather than traditional fishing communities, which already retained limited subsistence rights within protected waters. The proclamation is also likely to face a legal challenge. The Antiquities Act allows presidents to create national monuments, but courts have not definitively settled whether a later president can remove their protections. Earthjustice has promised to sue. In 2025, a federal judge halted commercial fishing in a different Pacific monument after finding that NOAA had bypassed the required public rulemaking process. The debate now centers on whether regulated fishing and strict conservation can coexist in some of the most ecologically and culturally significant waters on Earth. Learn more: "Executive Proclamation restores commercial fishing in Pacific marine monuments, unlocks economic opportunity." NOAA”
True
Confidence: High Checked on August 9, 2026

Summary

On June 11 2026 President Trump signed Proclamation 10918, restoring commercial fishing rights to roughly half a million square miles of Pacific waters, including the Papahānaumokuākea, Rose Atoll, and the Islands Unit of the Mariana Trench marine national monuments. The action permits U.S.-flagged vessels to fish under existing regulations, while some zones remain closed and the move faces legal challenges.

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Sources 59 searched

noaa.gov
whitehouse.gov
fisheries.noaa.gov
federalregister.gov
pbs.org
eelp.law.harvard.edu
sharkstewards.org
insideclimatenews.org

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