Ch 29: Marine Biodiversity Conservation

Tragedy of the Common

the dilemma arising when multiple individuals, acting independently and rationally consulting their own self-interest, ultimately deplete a shared limited resource, even when clearly not in anyone’s long term interest

Source Population

population that contributes significant offspring to subsequent generations

5 Steps to Marine Conservation → evidence based decision making

1. Utilization of scientific knowledge to understand human impacts on marine ecosystems

2. collecting data/information to identify areas of conservation interest

3. consider how these areas of conservation interest overlap or are spatially related to human activities

4. develop conservation plan

5. legislation and international agreements/cooperation

Sink Popluation

population that produce few successful offspring and contributes little to subsequent generations

Ecologically and Biologically Sensitive Areas (EBSAs)

ocean locations of special importance for their ecological and biological characteristics

Ecologically and Biologically Sensitive Area (EBSAs) Designation Criteria

• uniqueness

• special importance for life history stages of species

• importance for threatened or endangered species/habitats

• vulnerability, fragility, sensitivity, or slow recovery time

• productivity

• diversity

• naturalness

Marine Spatial Planning (MSP)

a holistic process that brings together diverse ocean stakeholders to coordinate informed decisions that support sustainable marine resource use

Marine Spatial Planning - Zone 3

singled out as conservation area. Fishing is permitted as long as ecosystem functioning is unharmed

Marine Spatial Planning - Zone 2

Singled out for its environment. No harvesting of renewable resources. Education/Research permitted

Marine Spatial Planning - Zone 1

Singled out for preservation. No harvesting of renewable resources. Restricted acess

EBSAs have ___ guarantee for protection

no

Marine Protected Areas (MPA)

are high protection areas, that are complicated to establish and are difficult to move/change

Other Examples of Marine Conservation Measures

• historic sites (shipwrecks, ect)

• species at risk act (SARA) critical habitat

• fishery closures

• marine mammal management areas

• indigenous led conservation of marine areas

• sacred natural sites

MPA Objectives

• genetic diversity

• apex predators

• seed populatoins

• fish production

• climate ‘refuges’

• stress refuges

• unkown diversity

Biological Traits Approach

a strategy in protected area planning that considers morphologica, biochemical, physiological, structural, phenological, behavioral, and ecological traits of an organism

→more complicated than just ‘there are fish here’

Ecosystem Based Management (EBM)

a management framework that recognizes the full array of interactions within an ecosystem that includes humans moving beyond considering single issues, species, or ecosystem services in isolation

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM)

a fisheries management framework that takes major ecosystem components and services - both structural and functional - into account

Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries

a fisheries management framework that links closely to human well-being

Precautionary Approach

an environmental decision making framework increasingly used by conservationists and ocean use managers to increase sustainability

Benefits of Marine Protected Areas

1. contribute to the maintenance or resiliance of both diversity and abundance

2. support for fishery stability: areas with ‘no-take’ results in better and sustainable catch levels

3. attract tourism