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A new global study has found that only 2.5 percent of tropical reefs are formally protected and conserved through laws and regulations.
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Sometimes you can find insight in surprising places.
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The world’s coral reefs do more for the planet than provide underwater beauty...Despite their importance, warming waters, pollution, ocean acidification, overfishing, and physical destruction are killing coral reefs around the world.
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Oceans cover 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface.
Kingdom of Tonga - Special Management Area Report 2020
In 2016 a partnership was developed between the Tongan Ministry of Fisheries and James Cook University in Townsville, Australia. Its aim was to implement the first stage of a Tongan national coral reef monitoring project, and to provide an overview of the current status of Tonga’s Special Management Area (SMA) program. Since 2002 the Ministry of Fisheries has been heavily focused on expanding the SMA program, and communities throughout Tonga have been enthusiastic about introducing local marine management. As a result of this momentum, the Ministry has focused primarily on implementation.
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A new report from the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) provides a promising assessment of the status of coral reefs in New Caledonia.
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Upon first glance, the crown-of-thorns starfish looks a lot like an enemy creature you'd find in a nature-based video game. Long spikes cover its body, which can reach 2 1/2 feet in diameter. It's somewhat reminiscent of a land mine, if a land mine had 14 to 21 movable arms.
Unwanted networks: Vessel traffic heightens the risk of invasions in marine protected areas
Invasive species pose a significant threat to a primary objective of marine conservation, protecting native biodiversity. To-date, research quantifying invasion risk to marine protected areas (MPAs) is limited despite potential negative consequences. As a first step towards identifying invasion risk to MPAs via vessel ballast or biofouling, we evaluated vessel traffic patterns by applying graph-theoretic concepts for 1346 vessels that connected invaded areas (‘invasion nodes’) along the Northeast Pacific coast to MPAs within Canadian waters in 2016.
Data-driven approach for highlighting priority areas for protection in marine areas beyond national jurisdiction
One of the aims of the United Nations (UN) negotiations on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) is to develop a legal process for the establishment of area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, in ABNJ. Here we use a conservation planning algorithm to integrate 55 global data layers on ABNJ species diversity, habitat heterogeneity, benthic features, productivity, and fishing as a means for highlighting priority regions in ABNJ to be considered for spatial protection.
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The results have been confirmed by the special Management Area Report 2020 that was compiled by the Ministry of Fisheries in partnership with Australia's James Cook University.