World Commits To Protect 30% Of Land And Seas By 2030

The world has taken first step to meet the stiff target of bringing 30 per cent of its land, inland and marine areas under protection by 2030

- Rohini Krishnamurthy

TWO MONTHS after 196 nations signed a pact to protect 30 percent of the world's terrestrial, inland, and marine areas by 2030 at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Montreal, Canada, scientists, and ocean conservation experts returned to the country for the 5th International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5). Their goal during this meet, held at Vancouver on February 3-9, was limited to planning the protection of 30 percent of the world's oceans in the next seven years.

Roughly 10 million square km of oceans must be annually brought under protection over the next seven years to meet the 30 percent target, experts said at the meet. There are mainly two tools to achieve the goal: (i) designating an area as a Marine Protected Area (MPA); and (ii) through Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMS).

An MPA is owned by the government, with the primary objective of long-term conservation by limiting human activities in the designated area. It also offers nature-based solutions to support global efforts towards climate change adaptation and mitigation, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).