Sanctuaries

The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary was designated September 18, 1992 by the federal government under the authority of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act.

National marine sanctuaries are protected waters that include habitats such as rocky reefs, kelp forests, deep-sea canyons, and underwater archaeological sites.

“They're all fairly modest in scale,” says Richards of Wright’s works, “but they had an absolutely outsized influence on generations of architects who thought about how we live in our homes, how we worship in our sanctuaries, how we use public space, and even how we engage artworks.”

Bolivia's salt flats, colored lagoons and flamingo sanctuaries attract thousands of visitors every year.

The incredible biodiversity found in India's national parks and wildlife sanctuaries is a testament to its ecological richness.

Dive into the Atlantic to see how sunken submarines have morphed into marine sanctuaries.

Over the last 60 years, the world's shark population has plummeted by nearly 80 percent, according to a study by the Pew Environment Group. The group believes sanctuaries for sharks could help them.

President Barack Obama on Monday announced the creation of two new marine sanctuaries in the states of Maryland and Wisconsin as part of a video-address delivered to Our Ocean 2015, a major international conference on the world's marine ecosystems in Valparaiso, Chile.

Webster sees aquaculture as a way to bring the oysters back. Hatchery "seed" — farm-raised juvenile oysters — are being used to create oyster sanctuaries, where harvesting is prohibited.

In addition to these protected sanctuaries, says Webster, there are also managed reserves, where diseased oysters are removed and replaced with disease-free hatchery seed. The oysters are allowed to grow until 60 percent of them are at least 10 centimeters long. Once the oysters have reached adult size, the reserves are opened up for harvest, supporting the commercial fishery.