Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Celebrates 10 Years!
This morning, Governor Ige issued a special proclamation to honor the ten-year anniversary of the establishment of the
Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. In recognition and celebration of the Monument’s 10th Anniversary, the
proclamation declares June 15, 2016 as “Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Day” in Hawaii. Staff from the
Monument’s seven co-managing agencies were present in the Governor’s office at the State Capitol for the announcement.
On June 15, 2006, the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument was established by Presidential
Proclamation 8031, creating the largest marine protected area in the world at the time. A year later, it was given its
Hawaiian name, Papahānaumokuākea.
The Monument was expressly created to protect an exceptional array of both natural and cultural resources, and also
ushered in a new genre of marine conservation: large-scale marine protected areas (LSMPAs). When Papahānaumokuākea was
first created, it was the largest marine protected area on the planet. Then, less than one percent of the ocean was
protected. Today there are 19 LSMPAs (formally established or government declared), totaling more than 10.5 million km2
or nearly 3% of the global oceans. In all, if the 19 sites were put together, they would be the second largest country
in the world, bigger than the United States.
This year, Papahānaumokuākea celebrates a decade of accomplishments made in cooperative conservation management,
restoration and discovery. July 30, 2016 will mark Papahānaumokuākea’s six year anniversary as the nation’s first (and
still only) “mixed” (natural and cultural) UNESCO World Heritage site.
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ENDS