Progress report for
Achieving the promise of 10% ocean protection by 2020
Achievement at a glance
The Ocean Sanctuary Alliance (OSA) announces the publication of the largest synthesis of important marine areas conducted to date in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science. This scientific study the first of its kind-- analyzed 10 UN and NGO maps depicting global marine priority areas. \r\nNations of the world have committed to protect at least ten percent of ocean area by the year 2020 under both the Sustainable Development Goals and the Convention on Biological Diversity, but this goal has not yet been attained and guidance on where to place these protected areas has been unclear. \r\nThe study, formally titled Gaps in Protection of Important Ocean Areas: A Spatial Meta-Analysis of Ten Global Mapping Initiatives was published October 2019. The full text of the paper can be found at\r\nhttps://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2019.00650/full\r\nDr. Ellen Pikitch, Endowed Professor of Ocean Conservation Science within Stony Brook Universitys School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and a board member of OSA, initiated and co-authored the study, which was financed through private donations and a grant from the Italian Ministry of Environment.\r\nThe goal of the study is to provide guidance for the siting of future Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) by synthesizing information on areas of the ocean that have already been identified as important but that are currently unprotected.\r\nThe analysis reveals the degree of consensus found among these ten maps, and importantly, determines the extent and location of priority areas that are not currently protected. Most, or three quarters, of nations protect less than 10% of the identified priority areas within their exclusive economic zones (EEZs). The study found that almost every country has an opportunity, and the current goal to protect 10% of the ocean by 2020 could be met solely through the actions of coastal states.Beneficiaries
The study findings can be used to establish MPAs that will benefit the entire Ocean.