DEMA Submits Comments on Re-Establishing the National Marine Sanctuary Nomination and Designation Process

Association Supports Sanctuaries and Suggests Criteria for Nominations and Designations of these Important Environmental Areas 

The Diving Equipment and Marketing Association (DEMA) recently submitted comments in support of re-establishing the nomination process for National Marine Sanctuaries and for determining how sanctuaries are selected. The comments were submitted by Tom Ingram, Executive Director of DEMA, on behalf of the Association.

Sanctuary officials solicited comments in the Federal Register, Volume 78, No. 125, asking for comments on the proposed amendments to the rules for nominations and for evaluating sites to be designated as National Marine Sanctuaries.

“As an Industry, the diving community supports the concept of having criteria-driven proposals and designation procedures which ensure that local communities and interested parties are a part of the overall process for these environmentally important areas,” commented Ingram. “The Diving Industry depends on sustainable interaction with the marine environment as well as with certain submerged cultural resources for its very existence, and is aware of the need for long term sustainability of these resources for all citizens of the U.S.”

DEMA’s comments emphasized:

• Having a clean and healthy environment in which divers can easily participate in the recreation contributes to the economy of the community which is local to the Sanctuary.   By some estimates recreational diving contributes more than $11 billion to the US GDP overall.
• The interest of snorkeling and scuba diving participants in protecting and respectfully using the marine environment while keeping it clean and healthy.
• The interest of snorkelers and scuba divers in protecting and observing historical and cultural resources.
• Suggestions for criteria to be used in the Sanctuary nomination and designation process, to include; the need for input from all user groups, the need for a clear balance between access and use by interested parties, and the health of the resource, recognizing that diving and snorkeling are NOT inherently consumptive activities, and the need to avoid unnecessarily restricting non-consumptive activities.
• DEMA’s continuing interest in participating with the nomination re-establishment and designation processes.

Ingram concluded, “DEMA and the Dive Industry look forward to working with the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Department of Commerce (DOC) to provide data and input from the recreational diving community so that decisions can be better made regarding sanctuary area nominations and designations.”

For more information, see National Marine Sanctuaries and the official comments submitted by DEMA.