The Marine Protected Areas Guide, a groundbreaking step in the protection of the oceans that includes the Mediterranean Conservation Society’s experience in Marine Protected Areas, has been published in Science.
A global roadmap for the ocean
The four protection levels in the Guide
- Full
- High
- Light
- Minimal
The Guide is the result of our accumulated experience in how MPAs should be planned in order to save the world’s oceans. We are proud that our findings and experience regarding the Marine Ranger System, which we implemented for the first time in Türkiye in the Gulf of Gökova, and its effects on biodiversity and coastal fisheries, are guiding ocean protection work through this publication. Benefiting the oceans from the Gulf of Gökova is one of our country’s achievements.
The timing of the publication is also extremely important for the oceans and for MPAs. Countries are preparing to negotiate, in Kunming, China, in 2022, the Convention on Biological Diversity’s target of “protecting at least 30% of the oceans by 2030”. The MPA Guide, prepared with the results of scientists’ decade-long work, will also guide these negotiations.
Why is a Marine Protected Areas Guide needed?
The absence of guidance on how to categorise MPAs or how to determine their likely outcomes is the root cause of these problems. The Marine Protected Areas Guide has been prepared to help eliminate these inconsistencies.
