Rep. Carbajal Celebrates Finalization of Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary

Today, Congressman Salud Carbajal (CA-24) celebrated the official designation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary which took place this past Saturday after more than a decade of advocacy on the Central Coast and the final rule published by the Biden-Harris Administration.

"Nearly a decade after the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary was first proposed to the federal government, the Biden-Harris Administration has now officially taken what began as a twinkle in the eye of the Central Coast and made it a reality," said Rep. Carbajal. "I'm proud to have stood with a generation of advocates and Indigenous leaders to see this critical protection implemented for the Central Coast."

The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary became official on November 30, 2024. The sanctuary covers 4,543 square miles off the Central Coast from Gaviota and Point Conception to Pismo Beach and southern San Luis Obispo County, making it the third-largest marine sanctuary in U.S. history.

The sanctuary covers 116 miles of coastline, entirely within California's 24^th Congressional District, and is the first ever to be nominated by an Indigenous group.

The management plan for the sanctuary crafted by the Biden-Harris Administration in cooperation with Rep. Carbajal and other local stakeholders lays the groundwork for a later expansion of the marine sanctuary boundaries to cover Avila Beach and Morro Bay, connecting the new sanctuary with the southernmost border of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. This framework mirrors the approach endorsed earlier this year by local Indigenous communities and the leaseholders of the proposed offshore wind sites off Morro Bay, as well as Rep. Carbajal and other local leaders.

Rep. Carbajal has been a consistent advocate for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary since coming to Congress in 2017, two years after the sanctuary was first proposed to the federal government.

In 2020, Carbajal and California Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris successfully secured an extension of the proposed sanctuary from the Trump Administration, keeping the process alive for enough time for the Biden-Harris Administration to move forward with the designation process in 2021 without needing to review a new proposal.

The proposed sanctuary moved into the designation phase in November 2021.

In October, Indigenous leaders and Rep. Carbajal hosted a celebration of the new sanctuary on Indigenous People's Day in Morro Bay, California.