Marine Protected Areas

Background

A combination of overfishing, pollution, and habitat destruction has seriously stressed the world’s oceans, particularly in densely populated areas. On a global scale, human population is skyrocketing, and nearly half of these people depend on the ocean for food. It is estimated that, globally, more than 75% of fish stocks are either fully exploited or over-exploited. In the last 3 decades of the 20th Century, the number of humans on the planet increased by more than 50%, from less than 4 billion to more than 6 billion, Simultaneously, the global fish catch, as reported by the fishing nations of the world, peaked in the mid to late 1980’s then began to decline. This portends an impending disaster, not only for humans, but also for the oceans.

A demonstrably effective tool for sustaining the ocean’s resources near population centers and elsewhere is the establishment of a network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), sanctuaries that protect most or all or most marine species and the habitats that sustain them.

These areas provide sanctuaries in which beleaguered species can regroup, where biodiversity can increase, and where fish can grow large enough to produce many offspring. Larvae and juveniles of many marine species can grow in and disperse from these sanctuaries. To learn more about Marine Protected areas and to download and copy an in depth brochure click on the following link. Marine Protected Areas Brochure.