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Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
The Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary is an 842-square-mile
(638-square-nautical-mile) marine protected area at the mouth of
Massachusetts Bay. The sanctuary boundary is somewhat rectangular, stretching
from three miles southeast of Cape Ann to three miles north of Cape Cod. The
sanctuary is about 25 miles east of Boston, and lies totally within federal
waters. It encompasses all of Stellwagen and Tillies Banks, and the southern
portion of Jeffreys Ledge.
Stellwagen Bank is an underwater plateau at the mouth of Massachusetts
Bay, formed by the same processes that formed outer Cape Cod. As the ice
sheets of the last Great Ice Age retreated, they left behind sand, gravel and
rock. At one point in time (perhaps 12,000 years ago), Stellwagen Bank was
actually above sea level, but as sea level rose and the glaciers continued to
melt, the bank gradually submerged beneath the sea.
Goal of MFP Policy
The SBNMS has been a very important fishing ground for almost four
centuries. The primary goal of MFP policy regarding the SBNMS is to ensure
that commercial fishing remains an integral part of the SBNMS ecosystem. Our
vision is that fishermen become integral to the scientific research and
monitoring work of the SBNMS, adding their significant observational
contribution to promote the protection of resources in addition to their
harvesting role.
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