Samantha Mythen
SPAIN has taken another important step forward to protect its oceans by expanding marine reserves yet the road ahead is long, a marine scientist says.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced the expansion of Spain’s marine protected areas during the United Nations Ocean Conference held in Nice, France, last week.
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are defined regions of the ocean that are managed to protect long-term conservation of its marine ecosystems.
Currently, 21.3% marine areas are protected in Spanish waters. The government’s announcement means 25% will be protected by the end of this year. Specifically, five new MPAs will be made part of the Natura 2000 Network, which covers Europes most valuable and threatened ecosystems.
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With this significant roadmap in place, Spain appears to be striding ahead on its goal to protect 30% of its marine areas by 2030.
However, WWF Marine Protected Areas Coordinator Oscar Esparza Alaminos says most of the MPA’s lack management plans, and only a small fraction are properly monitored.
“The next challenge is to move from promises on paper to real effective protection at sea and improve governance of these areas,” he says.
“The ocean gives us so much: it produces over more than half the oxygen we breathe, helps regulate the climate by absorbing CO?, and is home to over half of all life on Earth.”
He believes MPAs can be ‘one of the most effective ways’ to protect the sea, with WWF promoting their creation.
They help conserve biodiversity, ban destructive activities in sensitive areas, and strengthen ecosystems so they can better cope with climate change.
Alaminos pointed out they also act as nurseries that help restore fish populations such as in the Cala Ratjada in the Balearic Islands or the Medes Islands in Catalonia.
“But to work, these areas need to be well designed, based on science, and properly enforced with the involvement of all stakeholders,” he says. “If we don’t have those elements, all the MPAs are just paper work.”
The surrounding Atlantic ocean and the Balearic and Alboran seas provide food for millions in Spain. It boosts the economy through fishing and tourism. It protects the coastline from storms and erosion.
However, Alaminos says that the Iberian Peninsula’s seas and ocean are facing ‘serious and interconnected threats.’
“Overexploitation, habitat destruction and fragmentation, pollution. And on top of that, climate change is warming our waters, harming seagrass meadows and pushing out native species,” he says. “These pressures combine and worsen each other.” Like when seagrass dies, it releases carbon adding to climate change.
Next steps
A sperm whale breeding ground in the Mediterranean north of Menorca is also set to be created. This comes after conservation organisation Tursiops discovered it was the only proven breeding ground for the threatened whale species in the Mediterranean.
Since 2019, researchers recorded around 35 sperm whale encounters in that marine area, primarily females with their calves.
A law is also being drafted to create Spain’s first full marine National Park in the Mar de Las Calmas near El Hierro Island. If enacted, Alaminos explains, it would protect unique ecosystems like black coral forests, and important habitats for whales and dolphins, and safeguard endangered species like the loggerhead turtle and the critically endangered angelshark.
“It’s a unique opportunity to lead the way in marine conservation,” he says. “It’s the first step towards the creation of more marine national parks.”
He believes Spain is taking important steps to become a world leader in protecting its marine areas. It was the first country to ratify the High Seas Treaty, is supporting a moratorium on deep-sea mining and is pushing for a strong global treaty to tackle plastic pollution. Every year, more than eight million tonnes of plastic ends up in the Mediterranean.
Action from everyone
“Everyone has a role to play,” Alaminos says. “Tourists and citizens can make small choices that add up.”
People can take simple actions such as using reef-safe sunscreens that do not harm marine life, eating local, sustainable seafood, choose eco-moorings rather than anchoring boats on seagrass, reduce single-use plastics and join citizen science projects like Observadores del Mar.
“But beyond individual action, it’s important to push governments to match their policies with their conservation promises, and to ensure MPAs are properly managed and enforced, especially with the involvement of local communities in the management of these areas,” he adds. “Systematic change requires strong institutions to hold the government accountable.”
It’s also essential to manage tourism pressure in areas such as the Balearic and Canary Islands. “We need to find a balance between tourism and the ecosystems’ carrying capacity, reducing threats and ensuring long-term sustainability,” Alaminos says.
“Protecting the ocean means protecting the foundation of life on our planet,” he says.
The new MPA’s are the Mallorca Channel Seamounts; the Seco de Palos Seamounts and Pitchmark Field ; the Capbretón Tributary Canyon Systems; the Alboran Sea Banks and Gorges; and the Catalan Central Coast Marine Area.
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