scholarly journals Regional Management of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction in the Western Indian Ocean: State of Play and Possible Ways Forward

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 765-796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Wright ◽  
Julien Rochette
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Western Indian Ocean ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
International Organisations ◽  
Management Tools ◽  
Regional Management ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Regional Organisations

Abstract In recent years, the international community has become increasingly aware of the growing threats to marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (abnj), and international discussions on a new international legally binding are underway. In parallel, some States, through regional organisations, have progressively extended their activities into abnj, particularly through the development of area-based management tools (abmts). In this article, we consider how actors in the Western Indian Ocean (wio) might engage in abnj governance. In particular, we develop some possible scenarios for developing abmts in the wio, including through the development of fisheries closures, the establishment of marine protected areas (mpas), and the adoption of abmts under the auspices of relevant international organisations. We conclude that while the wio is currently not the most advanced region in terms of ongoing efforts to improve the governance of abnj, there are already some positive signals and promising options for the future.

scholarly journals Post-2020 Kunming 30% target can easily protect all endemic sharks and rays in the Western Indian Ocean and more

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Cheok ◽  
Rima W. Jabado ◽  
David A. Ebert ◽  
Nicholas K. Dulvy
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Western Indian Ocean ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Regional Collaboration ◽  
Distribution Ranges

SummarySharks and rays are possibly the most threatened Class of marine fishes and their declines can be halted if protected areas are optimised to benefit these species. We identify spatial priorities for all 63 endemic sharks and rays in the marine biodiversity hotspot, the Western Indian Ocean (WIO). Collectively, while the WIO nations currently surpass the 10% Aichi ocean protection target, this amounts to a dismal protection of only 1.57% of each species’ distribution range. We show that the entire ranges of all endemics can be achieved by protecting 11% of EEZs of WIO nations, well within reach of the new 30% of oceans by 2030 target. Regional management bodies exist, which if taken advantage of to implement shark and ray management, provide opportunities to implement more efficient management across the region. We recommend key management actions to implement and explicit incentivisation of international cooperation in the post-2020 biodiversity framework.Science for SocietyThe past decade has seen massive growth in the establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs), driven by the Aichi biodiversity target of protecting 10% of all ocean areas. This expansion of MPAs, however, has largely occurred in areas residual to extractive uses, often coinciding with less threatened areas of lower conservation value. This coming decade will see a further push to ensure 30% of the oceans are protected by 2030. It is important to understand how existing and future MPAs should be placed to benefit threatened biodiversity. Currently this is unclear for sharks and rays, comprising a species group that is the most evolutionarily distinct vertebrate radiation in the world and also one of the most threatened. We identify both regional and national conservation priorities for expanding marine protected areas to benefit all 63 endemic sharks and rays occurring in the Western Indian Ocean region. We find that the region has already exceeded the 10% ocean protection target, but this amounts to an average of only 1.57% protection of the distribution ranges of these species. We show that protecting the top 10% priority sites will conserve almost half of the geographic range of each species yet require only 1.16% of the total EEZ – a tiny fraction of the 30% by 2030 target. We also show that regional collaboration among all nations can result in more spatially efficient conservation priorities. We recommend that the post-2020 biodiversity framework needs to explicitly incentivise regional cooperation between nations to efficiently achieve urgent targets and maximise benefits to biodiversity.

scholarly journals Evaluating the potential for transboundary management of marine biodiversity in the Western Indian Ocean

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
NOam Levin
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Western Indian Ocean ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Transboundary Conservation ◽  
External Powers ◽  
Conservation Investment ◽  
Effective Conservation ◽  
Regional Conservation

The economic and socio-political interactions between countries can have major impacts on transboundary conservation decisions and outcomes. Here, we examined for 14 Western Indian Ocean (WIO) continental and island nations the extent of their marine coral reef species, fisheries and marine protected areas (MPAs), in the context of their geopolitical and socio-economic connections. We also examined the role of external countries and organisations in collaboration within the region. We found large variation between the different countries in their protected area size, and management, which result from different interests in establishing the MPAs, ranging from fisheries management, biodiversity conservation to asserting sovereignty claims. Seventy-four per cent of the 154 MPAs in the region belong to island nations; however, the largest MPAs in the WIO were established by European powers, and include Mayotte and Glorioso Islands (France) and Chagos (UK). While the majority of MPAs are managed by individual countries, between-country collaboration within and outside the region is key if the aim is to achieve effective conservation of ecosystems and species across the island and mainland nations in the region. This may be advanced by creating transboundary MPAs and by regional conservation investment by external powers that benefit from the region’s resources.

Tracking seabirds to identify potential Marine Protected Areas in the tropical western Indian Ocean

2012 ◽  
Vol 156 ◽  
pp. 83-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthieu Le Corre ◽  
Audrey Jaeger ◽  
Patrick Pinet ◽  
Michelle A. Kappes ◽  
Henri Weimerskirch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Western Indian Ocean

scholarly journals Implementation of Existing International Legal Instruments for Conservation and Sustainable Uses of Marine Biodiversity in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction: A Case Study of the OSPAR Convention

10.17345/1290 ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsay Ryan Valerio
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Surface Area ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
The World ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Regional Agreements ◽  
Set Up

The states of the world face the new challenge of attempting to prevent the global loss of marine biodiversity by protecting the 64% of the surface area of the oceans that lies beyond national jurisdiction. With this aim, various regional agreements have been negotiated to commit states to set up representative networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). The aim of this note is to explain how it was possible to designate six MPAs in the high sea under the OSPAR Convention and some of the challenges this process raised.

scholarly journals Genetic connectivity of the reef fish Lutjanus kasmira at the scale of the western Indian Ocean

2012 ◽  
Vol 69 (5) ◽  
pp. 842-853 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Muths ◽  
G. Gouws ◽  
M. Mwale ◽  
E. Tessier ◽  
J. Bourjea
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Genetic Differentiation ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Western Indian Ocean ◽  
Genetic Connectivity ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Mitochondrial Cytochrome ◽  
Mitochondrial Cytochrome B ◽  
Significant Genetic Structure

Examining the genetic structure of species allows an estimate of the level of evolutionary connectivity between localities; this information is important for marine biodiversity protection, in particular, for the delineation of marine protected areas. In this context, a total of 601 Lutjanus kasmira (Forsskål, 1775) were sampled in 16 localities of the western Indian Ocean and analyzed with both mitochondrial cytochrome b sequencing and eight microsatellite loci genotyping. Both genetic markers indicate that differentiation was not significant even between samples separated by more than 4000 km. This absence of genetic differentiation among samples was favored by ecological plasticity of the species and is now ensured by resultant high levels of dispersal. Nevertheless, some significant genetic structure was detected for the areas of Mauritius and Moroni, as well as within populations in all localities, which will have to be explained by additional studies on local processes.

scholarly journals Implementation of Existing International Legal Instruments for Conservation and Sustainable Uses of Marine Biodiversity in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction: A Case Study of the OSPAR Convention

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsay Ryan Valerio
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Surface Area ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
The World ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Regional Agreements ◽  
Set Up

The states of the world face the new challenge of attempting to prevent the global loss of marine biodiversity by protecting the 64% of the surface area of the oceans that lies beyond national jurisdiction. With this aim, various regional agreements have been negotiated to commit states to set up representative networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). The aim of this note is to explain how it was possible to designate six MPAs in the high sea under the OSPAR Convention and some of the challenges this process raised.

Marine Protected Areas beyond National Jurisdiction: Some Practical Perspectives for Moving Ahead

2012 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 351-373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina M. Gjerde ◽  
Anna Rulska-Domino
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Marine Conservation ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Political Commitments ◽  
High Seas

Abstract Despite strong legal duties and political commitments for marine conservation and ecosystem-based management, biodiversity in the high seas and the Area (jointly referred to as areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ)) is under increasing threat. One important tool for enhancing conservation and multi-sectoral cooperation is the establishment and maintenance of representative networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). This commentary reviews potential avenues for accelerating progress towards representative MPA networks as part of a larger-scale effort towards improving the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction. It builds on the report by Petra Drankier, Marine Protected Areas in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction, Report on Research Question 2 of the Study on ‘Biological Diversity and Governance of the High Seas’ (2011), which describes the applicable global and regional conventions by discussing the strengths and weaknesses of proposed avenues for progress, including a possible multilateral agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC). The commentary concludes with some observations for a pragmatic path ahead.

“Big” concerns with high latitude marine protected areas (MPAs): trends in connectivity and MPA size

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (12) ◽  
pp. 2603-2607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin J Laurel ◽  
Ian R Bradbury
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Marine Reserve ◽  
Reserve Design ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Management Tools ◽  
Reserve Size ◽  
Temperate Fish

The success of marine protected areas (MPAs) as fisheries management tools in tropical latitudes has generated interest in their applicability and potential elsewhere. Here we suggest that dispersal and gene flow in marine fish populations (a primary biological consideration for marine reserve design) increases with latitude. For example, north temperate fish species at latitudes between 40° and 45° had about three times greater dispersal potential (planktonic larval duration (PLD), n = 96 species) and genetic homogeneity (FST, n = 100 species) than fish species near equatorial regions. Using the PLD and FST relationships, dispersal increases at a rate of ~8% per degree of latitude north or south of the equator. Therefore tropical MPAs should not serve as direct scalar templates in other regions, but rather should be used as a basis against which higher-latitude MPAs should be scaled. However, a review of 429 existing MPAs indicates that no such changes in reserve size have been implemented with respect to latitude. Fisheries managers must be prepared and willing to implement MPAs at large scales in high latitudes, either as single reserves or in a network, or else we lose the legitimacy of a new and promising management tool for conserving marine biodiversity in cold ocean regions.

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