Progress report for
Meeting Sweden's MPA target
Achievement at a glance
After the Governments designation of new Natura 2000 sites in December 2016 Sweden has achieved the part of the national milestone target for protected areas, as well as the Aichi target 11, concerning the 10 % protection of marine protected areas (MPA).Since June 2017 the work with the national action plan for MPAs has continued in order to ensure that the quality aspects of the targets concerning ecological representativity, functionality and connectivity will be developed.
The Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management has employed regional coordinators to enforce and coordinate the County Administrative Boardswork with MPAs. Through this approach it is anticipated that the framework for MPAs that is described in the national action plan for MPAs will be implemented, together with the County Administrative Boards. This work aims at setting objectives for ecological representativity, functionality and connectivity. Since 2017 the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management has arranged tow workshops each year together with the County Administrative Boards, and by summer 2020 it is anticipated that regional plans for marine protection will be drafted.
With the increased financial resources that the Government has distributed for work with MPAs for the period 2018 to 2020, there is a good opportunity to contribute to fulfil not only the 10 % objective but also the objectives concerning the quality aspects of the national mile stone target as well as the Aichi target 11 for MPAs. The financial resources has been and is currently allocated to the County Administrative Boards for work concerning designation of MPAs, but also with work on monitoring of effects of fisheries conservation measures in MPAs, control and enforcement of fisheries conservation measures in MPAs, process support and training in adaptive management as well as connectivity studies.
Challenges faced in implementation
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