marine sanctuary -or- federal land grab

In December of 2014 the state of Wisconsin officially requested that an area of Lake Michigan roughly from Mequon to Two Rivers (up to 1260 square miles) be designated the Wisconsin-Lake Michigan National Marine Sanctuary. The federal Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) announced in October 2015 its intent to “designate a new national marine sanctuary to help conserve nationally-significant shipwrecks and related maritime heritage resources.”























 




See http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/wisconsin for details.
 
Claims of value for Wisconsin are, as always, wondrous: enhance heritage tourism, foster education and research partnerships, and enhance economic development. Reportedly this has broad public support from citizens, involved coastal cities, and stakeholders alike.
 
Some questions not found on the federal website:

• Hasn't Wisconsin already passed law protecting these historic sites? Why isn't that protection sufficient?
• Is it true that under marine sanctuary protection, even dropping anchor near a shipwreck can result in hefty fines, even though no damage occurred?
• Is it also true that accidental fuel spills within the designated area can result in hefty fines?
• What effect would this designation have on commercial and recreational fishing in the area, which extends roughly 20 miles out from the shore?
• Is there any end to the federal governments hunger for control over more and more of our land and resources? If there is such an end, define it.
• Given that the country is already $20 trillion in debt, is this designation sufficiently urgent to justify action at this time?
• If this has such broad support, why have none of us heard anything about this during the past two years of activity?
• How much input will citizens of Wisconsin have should the NOAA decide in the future to expand the sanctuary?

 
NOAA will hold four public meetings in March, with March 31 as the deadline for comments.
Scheduled meetings are as follows:

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