In recent decades, ocean protection has become a major area of focus in addressing the climate crisis. Now, a new study has found that ocean protection actions such as establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) deliver massive economic benefits to the fishing and tourism industries.
Currently, over 80 countries are aiming to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030, as specified by the High Seas Treaty, to prevent the loss of species and the benefits the ocean provides. However, a lack of understanding about the economic impacts of ocean protection can block progress. The study aimed to address this by showing how both fishing and tourism benefit from national parks of the sea.
For the study, the researchers examined more than 50 protected areas in over 30 countries in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania representing diverse ecosystems. The findings showed that MPAs boosted either fishing or tourism, with some profits in the billions, a press release said.
The researchers examined 200 studies on marine protected areas to better understand whether MPAs deliver economic benefits. The studies looked at 51 MPAs representing a diversity of ecosystems, from coral reefs, kelp forests, mangroves, rocky reefs, and salt marshes, to mudflats and sandy and muddy seabed habitats, the statement adds. The protection methods used in MPAs ranged from allowing or restricting many human activities to banning human activities completely.
The study found benefits to fisheries next to the protected areas. For instance, in 46 (90%) of the MPAs, benefits included an increased fishery catch (76%), body size (25%), and detection of spillover (16%).
The MPAs that delivered the most economic benefits were strictly protected, where fishing and other damaging activities were banned, the statement adds. Importantly, the study found no evidence of MPAs harming the fishing industry, which has traditionally been an argument against ocean protection actions.
“For far too long, marine parks have been overlooked as GDP generators and job creators. This study offers the strongest evidence yet that protecting the ocean replenishes it with abundant fish, protects it against climate change, but also boosts local and national economies. Now, we can add tourism operators and fisheries to the list of ocean protection beneficiaries,” study author Mark John Costello said in the statement.
