The White House has announced that President Bush is expected to designate the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands the United States’ 75th national monument later today.

WASHINGTON - President Bush on Thursday is expected to announce the creation of the world’s largest marine protected area — a group of remote Hawaiian islands that cover 84 million acres and are home to 7,000 species of birds, fish and marine mammals, at least a quarter of which are unique to Hawaii.

The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands comprise 139,000 square miles of largely uninhabited islands, atolls, pristine coral reefs and underwater seamounts.