Washington, DC --- Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a senior member of the Florida Congressional Delegation, is pleased to be an original cosponsor and the Republican lead on a bill to re-authorize the National Marine Sanctuary Program. Ros-Lehtinen is Co Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Marine Sanctuary Caucus in the House.

Ros-Lehtinen is a strong advocate for the National Marine Sanctuary Program, and has fought for the environmental protection that these fragile and critical ecosystems require. Ros-Lehtinen and her colleagues, Mr. Kildee of Michigan, Mr. Faleomavaega of American Samoa, Mr. Abercrombie of Hawaii, Mr. Farr of California, Ms. Woolsey of California, Ms. Christensen of the US Virgin Islands, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Fortuno of Puerto Rico, Ms. Hirono of Hawaii, & Mr. Klein of Florida, have signed on to co-sponsor this seminal legislative project.  Madeleine Bordallo of Guam introduced the legislation.

The Sanctuary Enhancement Act (SEA) of 2008 will amend and reauthorize the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) of 1972. This bill will improve the NMSA to strengthen the capacity of our national marine sanctuaries to conserve vital natural resources.

As a subsequent, the bill will formally establish a National Marine Sanctuary System for cohesive management, through which concerted actions & measures of protection for our ocean and coastal resources will be realized. Through the formal establishment of the National Marine Sanctuary System (NMSS), the national role and visibility of our sanctuaries will be intensified and this will ultimately drive a unified management objective that will assist to ensure a variety of unique marine eco-regions and maritime heritage areas to be encompassed within the protection of the NMSS.

The bill also contains provisions to strengthen interaction between industry stakeholders and conservationists and this is important for Ros-Lehtinen since her constituency contains many working families that make their living as commercial fishermen. Commercial and recreational fishermen, operating within sanctuary waters, contribute millions of dollars to Florida’s economy annually. In fact, our Sanctuary is a model for collaboration and cooperation between the scientific and commercial fishing communities.

Ros-Lehtinen said, “I am honored to be an original co-sponsor on this important legislative project because it will help revitalize defenses of our unique marine ecosystems. Through the actions of this bill, there will be an increased emphasis within the diversity of the marine environment and the protection required to maintain the beauty of its true nature and the critical importance it plays in the very survival of mankind.”

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