Dozens of initiatives addressing marine conservation valued at upwards of $5.24 billion, plus new commitments to protect over 1.5 million square miles of ocean have emerged from the third Our Ocean conference, held in Washington D.C.
Secretary of State John Kerry, in closing remarks to the conference on Sept. 16, noted that during the two day session participating nations created over 40 significant new or expanded marine protected areas.
Steps taken just this year will protect nearly 4 million square kilometers of ocean water, said Kerry, adding that he hoped that number would grow during the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources session convening in late September.
The momentum created by the conference of nations must be kept going, because the ocean is absolutely essential for life itself, “not just the food, but the oxygen and weather cycles of the planet all depend on the ocean,” Kerry said.
Announcements made during the conference included information about new projects to help to better understand the impacts of climate change on oceans and to make sure that we understand all the options to be able to adapt to them, Kerry said.
The United States, for example, has developed two cutting-edge satellites to send into space to help us understand better what is happening in the ocean, he said.
The U.S. has also committed $38 million to Pacific Island nations whose very existence is at stake due to rising seas, threatened fisheries and the other impacts of climate change, he said.
To date the three Our Ocean conferences have generated commitments valued at over $9.2 billion to protect oceans and committed to protect 9.9 million square kilometers of ocean — an area the size of the United States, according to a conference summary released by the State Department.
U.S. officials announced during the conference the expansion of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii, to cover an additional 1,146,798 square kilometers, to permanently protect coral reefs, deep sea marine habitat and important ecological resources.
That expansion was criticized by commercial fishermen in Hawaii, who harvest in that area, and also have reported the presence of vessels engaged in illegal fishing there to U.S. authorities. They question the ability of the federal government to provide equal protection of those waters from illegal, unregulated fishing.
Also announced was the establishment of a new marine monument of 12,725 square kilometers covering New England canyons and seamounts.
U.S. officials also announced that a number of members of the World Trade Organization, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Switzerland and Uruguay, have committed to begin negotiations on a new international agreement under the WTO to prohibit harmful fisheries subsidies that contribute to overfishing and overcapacity, and subsidies linked to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
The U.S. further committed to join with the World Wildlife Fund, Environmental Defense Fund, The Nature Conservancy, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation to provide $1.7 million to enable nations engaged in fishing to better monitor and prevent bycatch in global fisheries, supporting ecosystem-based fisheries worldwide.
