President Bush's creation last month of a vast marine monument out of the remote, biologically rich waters around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands meets with the approval of most of the American public, according to a survey commissioned by The Ocean Conservancy.

Before answering the question of whether or not they approved of Bush's decision, the 2,014 people polled this month around the nation first were given a description of the new marine area, which encompasses 140,000 square miles of protected waters teeming with marine life.

Seventy percent said they support and only 6 percent said they oppose the president's action in the poll conducted by Harris Interactive.

The remaining 24 percent did not have an opinion either way. The telephone survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Morgan Gopnik, senior vice president for The Ocean Conservancy, said the president's announcement gave "a shot in the arm" to marine issues.

In recent years, the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy and Pew Oceans Commission issued landmark reports recommending more than 200 changes to how the government manages its waters.

But Gopnik, a former senior adviser to the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, said little action has been seen on those recommendations.

"The designation of the Hawaiian monument, I think, gave people encouragement that they can do these type of environmental things without any political backlash," she said.

Just two days before Bush's June 15 announcement, the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative released a report naming the top priorities for ocean policy in the nation.

The report came at the request of several senators, including Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawai'i, who signed a letter seeking to sharpen the focus of priorities for Congress, including a list of the top 10 actions lawmakers should take.

Hearings on the report are expected to begin in early August.

Gopnik hopes the momentum created by the new monument will combine with the poll results and hearings to create the "perfect storm" for ocean policy.

"I do have the feeling that the moment is here to really make some fundamental change," Gopnik said.

Among the top recommendations of the June report are the establishment of a cohesive national ocean policy, designation of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as the lead civilian ocean agency, and creation of a trust fund in the U.S. Treasury as a source for federal and state governments seeking to improve the management and understanding of ocean and coastal resources.

Gopnik said she is not concerned that the public may feel that creating a sprawling monument in the Pacific Ocean is enough to protect the nation's waters.