Obama to create first US Atlantic marine monument

Washington (CNN)President Barack Obama plans to designate on Thursday an undersea range of canyons and peaks off the US Eastern seaboard as the country's first Atlantic marine national monument. The move, in the works for more than a year, will further Obama's conservation efforts in the final months of his presidency, an initiative he views as a major component of his environmental legacy. The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, situated 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod on the southern edge of George's Bank, will protect 4,913 square miles of ocean from commercial activity and development, the White House said. Photos: Midway: An oasis under threat Photos: Midway: An...