Stellwagen: The Making and Unmaking of a National Marine Sanctuary

The Gerry E. Studds Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary is located at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay, only twenty-five miles east of Boston. The area’s nutrient-rich waters attract a cornucopia of sea life—which in turn supports both recreational and commercial fisheries, along with a lucrative whale-watching industry. Peter Borrelli, who served on the sanctuary’s federally appointed advisory council for more than ten years, provides an insider’s view of the problems of managing a chronically under-funded marine preserve that is often of two minds about its mission. This is a sobering and well-considered examination of what happens when well-intentioned legislation meets the reality of trying to protect an extremely delicate and intensely popular ecosystem.