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President Obama is increasing the size of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument by over 316%, to encompass an area more than twice the size of Texas:
On Friday, President Obama will expand the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii, creating the world's largest marine protected area. Building on the United States' global leadership in marine conservation, today's designation will more than quadruple the size of the existing marine monument, permanently protecting pristine coral reefs, deep sea marine habitats, and important ecological resources in the waters of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.
Following this historic conservation action, the President will travel to Hawaii next week. On Wednesday evening, he will address leaders from the Pacific Island Conference of Leaders and the IUCN World Conservation Congress, which is being hosted in the United States for the first time. On Thursday, he will travel to Midway Atoll, located within the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, to mark the significance of this monument designation and highlight first-hand how the threat of climate change makes protecting our public lands and waters more important than ever.
The monument was originally created in 2006 by President George W. Bush and designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010. Since that time, new scientific exploration and research has revealed new species and deep sea habitats as well as important ecological connections between the existing monument and the adjacent waters. Today's designation will expand the existing Marine National Monument by 442,781 square miles, bringing the total protected area of the expanded monument to 582,578 square miles.
The move follows a similar expansion of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument in 2014.
DOI press release, and more resources at NOAA.
Reported at NPR, National Geographic, NBC, and WBUR.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @03:02PM
Finally proven. Obama is Hawaiian. Definitely not Botswanan.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @03:09PM
After graduating from high school, I went to a small out-of-state college where no one from high school knew me. I was told many times how impressive my false Australian accent was, so I decided it would be great fun to go through college pretending to be from Australia. All of my friends and even my girlfriend of two years think I'm Australian. I have a completely fake Australian identity, family, and past. I will soon be graduating, and I plan on asking the girl to marry me. Everything she knows about me is Australian I don't know how to tell her she doesn't really know me. Guess I'm forever a bloke.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @03:14PM
doesn't really know me
Knowing random facts about one's family history does not mean someone knows you. Is your family in on the con or have you never introduced her to any family members?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @03:29PM
She met the fake Australian family.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @03:39PM
No she hasn't. I just slam her pooper every night shouting "throw another shrimp on the barbie!"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @05:50PM
> even my girlfriend
And that's how we know its all made up. No one here has a girlfriend.
If you hadn't tried to pack in that one extra lie you would have gotten away with it too.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 27 2016, @05:54PM
> Definitely not Botswanan.
Because Botswana is landlocked?
Of course, original establishment of this sanctuary [nbcnews.com] makes Bush Hawaiian too. Hana hou!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 28 2016, @03:27AM
I thought Obama was not-Kenyan, not not-Botswanan.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 28 2016, @04:28AM
Sigh. Do I have to explain the insane troll logic behind this. OK. Obama claims to be from Hawaii, but he's obviously from Africa, we all know it. The question is which part of Africa. Well since Obama is the opposite of white, he must be from the opposite side of the Earth, and if you look at a globe, Botswana is exactly opposite Hawaii. If you dig a hole straight through the Earth from Obama's claimed birthplace, you'll find his real birthplace.