We strongly urge the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) to designate at least three new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) around Antarctica of at least 4,000,000 km2 in order to conserve marine biodiversity and increase the resilience of our Planet to climate change.  

According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), “Of the 600 fish stocks evaluated by FAO, 33% are now either overfished or depleted, and most of the rest are at their limit. Overfishing can wreak havoc on marine ecosystems and disrupt a crucial element of the food chain that humans and other animals rely on.”  The Census of Marine Life concluded in 2010 that 90% of the large fish are gone, primarily because of overfishing.

The Southern Ocean, surrounding Antarctica, is one of the least altered marine ecosystems on our Planet. Encompassing 15% of the world’s ocean, it is home to thousands of species found nowhere else.  These waters are vital to the health of our Planet, producing strong upwelling currents that carry critical nutrients to seas around the world.

Some of the most pronounced effects of climate change on Earth, such as warming and acidifying seas, and changes in sea-ice concentration and duration, are found in Antarctica. Studies show that MPAs can help build ecosystem resilience to climate changes by eliminating stresses, such as fishing.

MPAs can also protect important carbon pools, also known as biological reservoirs, and sinks. Over 55 percent of the biological carbon stored globally is kept by living marine organisms.

CCAMLR was established by international convention in 1982 with the objective of conserving Antarctic marine life.  It already has a critical mass of members including 26 countries and the European Union (a total of 53 countries)!  

However, CCAMLR is now ten years past the agreed 2012 deadline to establish a representative system of MPAs in the Southern Ocean. CCAMLR’s greatest achievement in marine protection, the designation of the world’s largest MPA - the Ross Sea region Marine Protected Area, is an example of global leadership. However, the fact that the three MPA proposals under discussion have not been designated despite years of negotiations means that CCAMLR is failing its mandate to deliver a network of MPAs in the Southern Ocean. Now is the time for CCAMLR to once again show global leadership and deliver on ocean protection in the Convention Area. We urge CCAMLR to act immediately to: 

• Adopt the three currently proposed MPAs. (WSMPA - Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area;  EARSMPA - East Antarctic Representative System of Marine Protected Areas and D1MPA - Domain 1 Marine Protected Area)
• Establish new MPAs around Antarctica.
  Only two Members - China and Russia - have NOT stated their support for the adoption of at least one of the MPAs currently under consideration.  Brazil, Japan, Namibia and South Africa are formal co-sponsors of one or two BUT NOT ALL three MPA proposals under discussion. 

The United Nations has declared 17 Goals among which “Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources” with several targets among which 14.4 and 14.5:

• “14.4 By 2020, effectively regulate harvesting and end overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices and implement science-based management plans, in order to restore fish stocks in the shortest time feasible, at least to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield as determined by their biological characteristics”
• “14.5 By 2020, conserve at least 10 percent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information.”

In its own resolution from the Lisbon Conference of July 2022, the United nations admits: “We deeply regret our collective failure to achieve targets 14.2, 14.4, 14.5 and 14.6 that matured in 2020, and we renew our commitment to taking urgent action and to cooperating at the global, regional and subregional levels to achieve all targets as soon as possible and without undue delay.”

Environmental disasters are looming.  It is high time to unite and take bolder and bigger steps towards protecting our Planet and combating climate change! We strongly urge CCAMLR to designate new Marine Protected Areas around Antarctica covering at least 4,000,000 km2 without delay!