The Blake Plateau is a cultural, spiritual, historical, and ecological treasure. It serves as the final leg of the Middle Passage, the seafaring route by which our ancestors—as enslaved West and Central Africans—were transported to America. It should be recognized as the ancestral graveyard of our enslaved relatives who did not survive its crossing.
This extraordinary undersea plateau—home to the world’s largest deep-sea coral habitat—is found roughly 80-200 miles offshore North Carolina to Florida and is refuge for a diverse assemblage of sea turtles, large fish like sharks and swordfish, and elusive seabirds and whales. The area is an important cultural landmark for Gullah/Geechee due to the act that many of our kidnapped African ancestors did not survive crossing the Blake Plateau as part of the Middle Passage.
CONSERVE BLAKE PLATEAU
We have a unique opportunity to protect the rich and vulnerable resources of the Southeast Region’s Blake Plateau now, before harmful commercial industries take root offshore.
The Blake Plateau remains largely pristine, with protections in place until 2032 from industries like oil and gas. Setting long-term safeguards for key ecological features in the heart of the plateau offshore South Carolina and Georgia from extractive activities can help conserve the area’s health for this and future generations and highlight the cultural importance of this special place.
Demonstrating broad support from our community will encourage the administration to act.
SIGN HERE to support protecting the Blake Plateau:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd_mgm0JEGto_IIpO-HRHPGLOeQo-Q5Qn_2oj3uvOK4TsrdAg/viewform
Learn more about the Blake Plateau here:
Conserve the Blake Plateau: https://conserveblakeplateau.org/