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Jun 02 2025
7Global commitments to protect the world's oceans are falling dangerously short, with conservationists raising concerns about slow progress and policy reversals, especially by major nations such as the United States. The goal of designating 30% of global marine areas as protected by 2030, agreed to by 196 countries under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in 2022, is becoming increasingly elusive.
As of now, only about 8.4% of the oceans fall under Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), and just 2.7% of these zones are fully or highly protected—levels considered necessary to ensure ecological benefits. “With less than 10% of the ocean designated as MPAs and only 2.7% fully or highly protected, it is going to be difficult to reach the 30% target,” said Lance Morgan, president of the Marine Conservation Institute in Seattle. The institute maintains an online atlas tracking global MPA developments.
The challenge is compounded by policy backtracking. Morgan criticized the United States for abandoning longstanding bipartisan support for marine conservation. In April, former President Donald Trump signed an executive order that opened extensive portions of a Pacific MPA to industrial fishing—reversing protections that had been in place for years.
Globally, 16,516 MPAs have been declared, but their effectiveness varies significantly. Many MPAs lack stringent restrictions, and only a fraction enforce bans on harmful activities like fishing. “Only a third of them have levels of protection that would yield proper benefits,” noted Joachim Claudet, a marine socio-ecologist with France’s CNRS.
Daniel Pauly, a fisheries scientist at the University of British Columbia, emphasized that many MPAs were established not primarily for biodiversity, but to boost fishing yields. He argued that well-managed MPAs help replenish fish stocks beyond their borders, citing a 2022 Science journal study that reported a 54% increase in yellowfin tuna around a no-fishing zone in Hawaiian waters—now under threat due to recent U.S. policy changes.
Effective MPAs require robust fishing bans, but zones with such protections are rare and often located far from heavily fished regions. Claudet stressed the necessity of restrictions for sanctuaries to function. In Europe, enforcement remains weak: 90% of MPAs are still subjected to bottom trawling, according to Alexandra Cousteau of the NGO Oceana. “It’s ecological nonsense,” she said.
Bottom trawling, a destructive method involving dragging heavy nets across the seabed, continues to damage marine environments. Oceana reported that in 2024 alone, French MPAs experienced 17,000 hours of bottom trawling, while British waters endured 20,600 hours.
A WWF report revealed that only 2% of European Union marine waters are covered by MPAs with active management plans. Many designated areas lack any real protective measures. Jacob Armstrong, who leads WWF’s ocean program in Europe, criticized the superficiality of such efforts, warning that without concrete action, these zones amount to little more than “symbolic markings on a map.”
Environmental advocates are urging governments to move beyond pledges and implement meaningful protections to halt the degradation of marine ecosystems.
Source:https://phys.org/news/2025-06-world-short-marine-sanctuaries.html
This is non-financial/medical advice and made using AI so could be wrong.
