Marine national parks offer billions in profits, study finds

Marine national parks boost fishing and tourism, with profits sometimes reaching the billions, a comprehensive global study found.

Marine Protected Areas are found in many oceans, with past research showing fully protected areas can help to restore fish populations by 500 per cent on average, yielding bigger fish over time. A study of 51 protected areas in more than 30 countries in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania concluded that the status brings wider financial benefits.

“In every corner of the globe, ocean protection boosts economies,” said Dr Mark John Costello, author of the study and a professor at the faculty of biosciences and aquaculture at Nord University in Norway. “For far too long, marine parks have been overlooked as GDP generators and job creators.”

Dr Costello said the study offered the strongest evidence yet that protecting the ocean replenishes it with abundant fish and protects the environment against climate change. It also boosts local and national economies, he said.

“Now, we can add tourism operators and fisheries to the list of ocean protection beneficiaries,” he added.

The study looked at MPAs representing a variety of ecosystems, including coral reefs, kelp forests, mangroves, rocky reefs, salt marshes and mudflats.

Protection levels included allowing many human activities to complete bans.

Less than 8 per cent of the world’s seas are protected, far short of a goal of 30 per cent. In the UAE, 12 per cent of marine territory is made up of reserves, compared with a global average of 7.5 per cent.

Abu Dhabi’s 4,255 square kilometre Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve is home to the world’s second largest dugong population, while hawksbill turtles are found at the 59 square kilometre Saadiyat Marine National Park.