MPA News
Notes & News
France sets MPA target: 20% of waters in MPAs by 2020 In July, President Nicolas Sarkozy announced new targets for the protection of France’s maritime territory. He called for the percentage of French waters in MPAs – currently just 1% – to be increased to 10% by the year 2012, and to 20% by the year 2020. Furthermore he called for half of the protected waters in 2020 to be in no-take marine reserves. As France’s maritime territory covers 11 million km2 (second largest maritime territory in the world, after the U.S.), this would amount to more than 2 million…
Note from the Editor: An Anniversary and a New Publishing Schedule
Dear reader, In July 1999, the first issue of MPA News was published. Its purpose was simple: to help MPA planners and managers learn from each other, no matter where they were in the world. Now 10 years later, MPA News has more than 4000 subscribers in 122 countries. Our staff and editorial board are pleased to continue to serve the field of MPA planning and management. With you, we are building a global community of MPA practitioners. This issue of MPA News also marks a new publishing schedule for the newsletter. For at least the next two years, MPA…
Updates on MPA Networks in Progress: Experiences So Far in Victoria and West Hawai’i
This past May at the Second International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC2), multiple sessions offered insights on existing MPA networks, and practitioners reflected on their experiences to this point. One of the most significant messages from the meeting was that some MPA networking initiatives have been in place long enough to begin yielding good practices. This month we examine two such networks: a state-run system of marine national parks in Victoria, Australia, and a network of fish replenishment areas to support the aquarium fishery in West Hawai`i. CASE 1 – VICTORIA: A representative system of no-take areas In 2002 when…
Special Section: More News from the Second International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC2)
The Second International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC2), held in May in Washington, DC, provided an array of findings and perspectives on the use of MPAs for ecosystem conservation and fisheries management. Some of these lessons were described in our June 2009 issue. Our coverage of the meeting continues below: Vessel reefs as a useful tool for no-take areas and fisheries management Sunken vessels in no-take marine reserves could serve a strategic role in attracting marine life to those protected areas and increasing biomass production, according to Paul Arena of Nova Southeastern University in Florida (U.S.). In his research of…
Letter to the Editor: Be Honest with Communities about MPAs
Dear MPA News, I am writing in response to the article on MPA communications in your May 2009 issue. One success factor for MPAs is the management of local community expectations. It is essential that we are honest with communities and local stakeholders about what an MPA can and cannot achieve: Be clear on what benefits the local resource users will get from the MPA. If the MPA will cover only 20 hectares of reef, for example, it may have little effect on fish populations on nearby reefs or on highly mobile fish stocks. If our long-range goal is to…
Notes & News
Enormous no-take areas in Western Pacific set to take effect January 2010 In May, government ministers of Western Pacific island nations agreed to add two more areas to a system of high seas fishing closures already set to take effect in January 2010. The entire system of closures will cover 1.2 million km2, and will include waters from French Polynesia to Palau. Initiated to protect tuna stocks, the closures will represent collectively the largest no-take area in the world. Last year the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, which regulates international fisheries in the region, agreed to close two large…
Australia Designates Massive, Interim Conservation Zone in Coral Sea
In May, the Australian government declared the area of the Coral Sea under its jurisdiction to be a “conservation zone”. Under Australian environmental law, the declaration provides interim protection while the area is assessed for possible inclusion in one or more Commonwealth marine reserves. The 972,000-km2 Coral Sea Conservation Zone extends from the eastward boundary of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park to the edge of the Australian EEZ, where it borders the waters of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. The new conservation zone indicates the government’s interest in the area and applies new permit requirements to…
South Africa Announces Plan for Large Offshore MPA
In May, the South African government announced its intent to designate a large, multiple-use MPA around the Prince Edward Islands – two islands in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean located roughly 1770 km southeast of mainland South Africa. The Prince Edward Islands MPA would total 180,633 km2 in area, covering one-third of South Africa’s EEZ around the islands. The MPA would include a no-take Sanctuary Zone (4400 km2) as well as other zones with various use restrictions. Bottom-trawling and gillnetting would be banned throughout the site. The proposal is open for public comment until 6 July 2009. MPA News spoke with…
Special Section: News from the International Marine Conservation Congress and Second International Marine Protected Areas Congress
More than 1200 people from over 70 countries gathered in May in Washington, DC, at the International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC) and Second International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC2). The joint meeting provided a broad range of news and viewpoints from researchers, managers, government officials, NGOs, and commercial interests. Travel grants provided by the conference organizers supported 24 individuals from 22 countries. MPA News attended the joint meeting and will feature selected findings in this and next month’s edition: What mollusks can tell us about larval export from marine reserves The concept of larval export is central to the role…
Results of MPA News Poll: Appreciation Growing for EBM, and for MPAs’ Place in It
The April 2009 edition of MPA News featured an article on the role of MPAs in ecosystem-based management (EBM). We invited readers to participate in an online poll on the subject, with the goal of measuring attitudes on the relationship between these management measures. MPA News conducted an identical poll in 2006 (MPA News 8:6). Several dozen readers from around the world participated in the poll – thank you. A summary of your answers is below. Most noteworthy is an apparent shift in appreciation for the importance of ecosystem-based management to the success of MPAs. Whereas three years ago results…