British Indian Ocean Territory (the Chagos Archipelago): Setting, Connections and the Marine Protected Area

On February 8, 2018, the U.K. Supreme Court delivered its judgment in R (Bancoult No 3) v. Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. The case concerned a challenge to the validity of a Marine Protected Area (MPA) extending 250,000 square miles around the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT or Chagos Archipelago). Declared in 2010, the MPA was justified on the ground of environmental protection and resulted in a ban on all commercial fishing in this zone. The appellant alleged that the MPA had been established for an improper purpose—to prevent the Chagos Islanders from resettling the Archipelago. He claimed that this was evidenced by a diplomatic cable sent from the U.S. embassy in London. It recorded a 2009 meeting in which U.S. and British officials discussed the reasons behind the MPA. The cable was subsequently leaked via the WikiLeaks website and published in two national newspapers. Accordingly, as Lady Hale rightly observed, “[t]he crucial legal issue in this case is therefore the admissibility of the cable.”

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Using historical fisheries data to predict tuna distribution within the British Indian Ocean Territory Marine Protected Area, and implications for its management

Aquatic Conservation Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems ◽

10.1002/aqc.3204 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 29 (12) ◽

pp. 2057-2070 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Nicholas Dunn ◽

David Curnick

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area

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Dispute Settlement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea: Survey for 2010

The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law ◽

10.1163/157180811x592101 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 26 (4) ◽

pp. 495-523 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Robin Churchill

Keyword(s):

United Kingdom ◽

Protected Area ◽

Dispute Settlement ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Law Of The Sea ◽

Advisory Opinion ◽

The Law ◽

The Antarctic ◽

Chagos Archipelago

AbstractThis is the seventh of a series of annual surveys reviewing dispute settlement in the law of the sea both under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and outside the framework of the Convention. The main developments during 2010 were the commencement of four new, and very different, cases—a request for an advisory opinion in the Responsibilities and Obligations of States sponsoring Persons and Entities with respect to Activities in the Area case and three contentious cases, the Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan), the M/V Louisa (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines v. Kingdom of Spain) and Dispute concerning the ‘Marine Protected Area’ related to the Chagos Archipelago (Mauritius v. United Kingdom) cases—and an order by the ITLOS declining to prescribe provisional measures in the M/V Louisa case.

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Mitochondrial genome of the silky shark Carcharhinus falciformis from the British Indian Ocean Territory Marine Protected Area

Mitochondrial DNA Part B ◽

10.1080/23802359.2020.1775147 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 2416-2417

Author(s):

Shaili Johri ◽

Taylor K. Chapple ◽

Elizabeth A. Dinsdale ◽

Robert Schallert ◽

Barbara A. Block

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Mitochondrial Genome ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Silky Shark ◽

Carcharhinus Falciformis

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The 2010 Declaration of a Marine Protected Area around the Chagos Archipelago: Some Legal Reflections

Yearbook of International Environmental Law ◽

10.1093/yiel/yvy091 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 28 ◽

pp. 15-37

Author(s):

Milan J N Meetarbhan

Keyword(s):

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Chagos Archipelago

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Behavior and Ecology of Silky Sharks Around the Chagos Archipelago and Evidence of Indian Ocean Wide Movement

Frontiers in Marine Science ◽

10.3389/fmars.2020.596619 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

Author(s):

David J. Curnick ◽

Samantha Andrzejaczek ◽

David M. P. Jacoby ◽

Daniel M. Coffey ◽

Aaron B. Carlisle ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Spatial Ecology ◽

Large Scale ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Movement Ecology ◽

High Mobility ◽

Diving Behavior ◽

Diel Vertical Migrations ◽

Silky Shark ◽

Chagos Archipelago

Silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis) represent a major component of global shark catch, both directly and as bycatch, and populations are declining as a result. An improved understanding of their movement ecology is needed to support conservation efforts. We deployed satellite and acoustic tags (2013–2018) and analyzed historical fisheries records (1997–2009), to investigate the spatial ecology of silky sharks in the central Indian Ocean and a large Marine Protected Area (MPA; 640,000 km2) around the Chagos Archipelago. We observed high fidelity to the MPA, and a sustained diurnal association with a seamount complex, with individuals moving off at night and returning at sunrise. Yet, we also observed large-scale divergent movements in two satellite tagged individuals and documented the furthest recorded displacement distance for a satellite tagged silky shark to date, with one individual moving from the MPA to the Kenyan coast—a displacement distance of 3,549 km (track distance ∼4,782 km). Silky sharks undertook diel vertical migrations and oscillatory diving behavior, spending > 99% of their time in the top 100 m, and diving to depths of greater than 300 m, overlapping directly with typical deployments of purse seine and longline sets in the Indian Ocean. One individual was recorded to a depth of 1,112 m, the deepest recorded silky shark dive to date. Individuals spent 96% of their time at liberty within water temperatures between 24 and 30°C. Historic fisheries data revealed that silky sharks were a major component of the shark community around the archipelago, representing 13.69% of all sharks caught by longlines before the fishery closed in 2010. Over half (55.88%) of all individuals caught by longlines and purse seiners were juveniles. The large proportion of juveniles, coupled with the high site fidelity and residence observed in some individuals, suggests that the MPA could provide considerable conservation benefits for silky sharks, particularly during early life-history stages. However, their high mobility potential necessitates that large MPAs need to be considered in conjunction with fisheries regulations and conservation measures in adjacent EEZs and in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

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Modelling fishing location choice and spatial behaviour of fishers near a marine protected area

Marine Economics and Management ◽

10.1108/maem-10-2019-0009 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Riad Mohammed Sultan

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Production Function ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Location Choice ◽

Spatial Behaviour ◽

Content Type ◽

The Indian Ocean ◽

Catch Rates ◽

Fishing The Line

PurposeThis study investigates whether higher catch rates near a marine protected area (MPA), and/or in other fishing areas within a choice set, attract more fishers. A survey conducted in the fishing grounds near an MPA located in south east of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean shows concentration of fishers in regions with lower catch rates. This contrasts with the predictions of the “fishing the line” hypothesis and the ideal free distribution (IFD) that fishers are likely to be attracted near the MPA with higher resource abundance.Design/methodology/approachUsing the random utility model as the framework and the random parameter logit (RPL) model, the study attempts to explain spatial behaviour of fishers. Expected catch and catch variability are modelled using the Just and Pope (JP) production function. The study also estimates effort elasticities with respect to expected catch and catch variability and simulates the relocation of effort from area closure.FindingsThe paper concludes that higher catch does attract fishers but is a partial and very restrictive explanation of fishers' behaviour. The “fishing the line” hypothesis does hold to some extent, but it should not be taken for granted that rising catch rates in adjacent waters will increase fishing pressure. The paper concludes that factors such as catch variability, distance from homeport to fishing ground, potential physical risk and attitudes towards risk of fishers affect spatial behaviour of fishers and should be considered for the placement and size of MPAs. The study also finds that the responsiveness of effort to catch rates is lowest in areas which are already heavily fished and easily accessible.Practical implicationsThe identification of fishing areas as complements (when fishing in one area increases fishing effort in another) and substitutes is valuable information for determining the placement and size of an MPA. A larger reserve is likely to have more displacement effect in this case than a smaller one. Therefore, a small or a network of a small reserve may be appropriate. The premise to select the site and size of the reserve is to avoid overconcentration of fishers in alternative fishing areas, which can be vulnerable to excessive fishing and unintended effects from fishers.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to an understanding of fishing behaviour and its impact on the configuration of marine reserves. It discusses the importance of effort elasticities to determine the placement and size of an MPA. Studies on this topic are very scanty in the Indian Ocean region. It also shows the application of location choice model, the RPL model and the JP production function in the fisheries sector for a small island.

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Complete mitochondrial genome of the whitetip reef shark Triaenodon obesus from the British Indian Ocean Territory Marine Protected Area

Mitochondrial DNA Part B ◽

10.1080/23802359.2020.1775148 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 2347-2349

Author(s):

Shaili Johri ◽

Taylor K. Chapple ◽

Robert Schallert ◽

Elizabeth A. Dinsdale ◽

Barbara A. Block

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Mitochondrial Genome ◽

Protected Area ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Complete Mitochondrial Genome ◽

Reef Shark ◽

Triaenodon Obesus

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Dispute Concerning Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary Between Mauritius and Maldives in the Indian Ocean (Mauritius/Maldives)

The American Journal of International Law ◽

10.1017/ajil.2021.24 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 115 (3) ◽

pp. 519-526

Author(s):

Craig D. Gaver

Keyword(s):

Indian Ocean ◽

Marine Protected Area ◽

Advisory Opinion ◽

Legal Documents ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

International Court ◽

Maritime Boundary ◽

The Indian Ocean ◽

General Assembly Resolution ◽

Chagos Archipelago

On January 28, 2021, a Special Chamber of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) dismissed all of the respondent's preliminary objections in Dispute Concerning Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary Between Mauritius and Maldives in the Indian Ocean (Mauritius/Maldives). The proceeding arose out of Mauritius's long-running effort to regain sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, which was originally “detached” from Mauritius in 1965 by the United Kingdom (UK). Although the Judgment will allow the case to proceed to the merits, it is significant in its own right for its engagement with several earlier legal decisions, including the arbitral award in Chagos Marine Protected Area Arbitration and the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) Advisory Opinion on the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965, as well as UN General Assembly Resolution 73/295 affirming the Advisory Opinion. The Special Chamber stitched together a series of legal documents that, considered individually, were either non-binding or limited in scope to achieve a determination greater than the sum of its parts—one that effectively resolved the disputed sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago.

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