Fishery council lifts fishing ban in Marianas Trench and other federally protected waters

By Mar-Vic Cagurangan

The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council has taken a final action to lift fishing restrictions in the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument and other federally protected areas, in line with the Trump administration’s bid to reinvigorate America’s seafood industry.

“If we don’t support our commercial fisheries, we will continue to eat fish from foreign countries,” said Chelsa Muña, Guam’s agriculture director and representative to the council.

The council said reopening the marine sanctuaries would facilitate commercial fishing under existing permit, reporting, gear restrictions, area closures, catch limits and protected species requirements.

Muna noted that foreign fishing fleets harvesting marine resources in the region are not subject to the same regulatory regimes as U.S. fishers.

During its 206th meeting in Honolulu this week, the council also agreed to restore commercial fishing in parts of the Pacific Islands Heritage, Rose Atoll and Papahānaumokuākea marine national monuments.

“This is not about removing monument protections; it’s about restoring sustainable fishing in limited areas under fishery regulations the council has developed over decades,” said Kitty Simonds, the council’s executive director.

She argued that the regulations were designed to balance access and conservation, guiding the council’s decisions under the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green tried to push for the retention of full protections for Papahānaumokuākea and the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monuments.”

The council's final vote was the culmination of a federal process that began last year and required public input and agency reviews.

The council’s decision on Rose Atoll, Marianas Trench and Papahānaumokuākea

monuments was prompted by President Trump’s executive order "Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness,” which accompanied another directive, "Unleashing American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific." Both were issued on April 17, 2025.

Marianas Trench

"Recommended fishing areas to open are 12 to 50 nautical miles at Muliava (Rose Atoll), 0 to 50 nautical miles in the Marianas Trench Islands Unit, and 3 to 200 nautical miles in Papahānaumokuākea for bottomfish and pelagic fisheries only," the council said in a press release 

"In Papahānaumokuākea, the 0 to 3 nautical miles closure for all commercial fisheries and longline fishing shoreward of 50 nautical miles would remain prohibited," it added.

For the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument, the council recommended allowing commercial fishing within the protected waters from 50 to 200 nautical miles seaward of the Jarvis, Wake and Johnston Atoll Islands.

The reopening of Heritage was covered by the “Unleashing American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific" directive. However, the council said the final action requires a review by the National Marine Fisheries Service.

ADVERTISEMENT

For Papahānaumokuākea, an additional step is required to address the National Marine Sanctuary's fishing rules. This monument was established in 2006.

The fishery council, headquartered in Honolulu, manages fisheries within the exclusive economic zone off Hawai`i, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and eight remote islands. The area is about 1.5 million square miles, which is the size of the continental United States and constitutes about half of the nation’s exclusive economic zone.

The CNMI’s representatives to the council welcomed the reopening of the Marianas Trench to fishing activity.

“We opposed the monument from the beginning, but our people were given many promises about tourism and new opportunities that never came,” said Sylvan Igisomar.

ADVERTISEMENT

Trump’s executive order reversed former President George W. Bush’s January 2009 action, which established the Mariana Trench, Rose Atoll and Heritage Marine National Monuments.

In 2017, then-President Barack Obama expanded the areas of coverage, 

safeguarding their unique marine ecosystems, including coral reefs and deep-sea habitats, due to their scientific and ecological significance.

“I am sad that with all these restrictions in our areas, we are slowly losing some of our culture,” said CNMI council member Pedro Itibus. “The next generation may not be able to learn about our history, and we need to keep fighting to protect our rights in every way we can.”

Nathan Ilaoa, the council’s chair, said a large part of American Samoa's territorial water was closed “without consultation,” affecting the territory’s cannery industry and the small businesses that depend on a viable fishing economy.

“This is not a fight between community and commerce or between local values and outside interests because the families who own and operate these longline vessels are American Samoans,” said Edgar Feliciano, council member.

“Opening these waters is not a silver bullet, but it can give a struggling fishery just enough room to survive under some of the most stringent regulations in the Pacific," he added.

Subscribe to

our digital

monthly issue