IUCN Global Marine Program goes Polar

IUCN’s Global Marine Program is taking the lead for IUCN on all polar issues and so will now be known as the Global Marine and Polar Program (GMPP). The GMPP will continue to be the programmatic lead on all marine issues inside national jurisdiction as well as areas beyond national jurisdiction. The overall coordinator of the IUCN polar programmes will be Thomas Laughlin, Deputy Head of GMPP. GMPP Arctic.

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Sanctuaries of the Caribbean

Sanctuaries of the Caribbean a film about the MPAs in the Southeastern Caribbean, produced earlier this year as part of the Coastal and Marine Management & Education in the Southeastern Caribbean project, can now be viewed on YouTube at the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMKKkpLreXw

Restore America’s Estuaries Releases Greenhouse Gas Action Plan for Tidal Wetlands

Blue Ribbon Panel Issues Report on Development of National Greenhouse Gas Offset Protocol


Download the report at www.estuaries.org/climate-change.html

WASHINGTON—Restore America’s Estuaries (RAE) announced today that it has released an action plan that will speed the creation of a greenhouse gas offset protocol for coastal tidal wetlands.

RAE’s “Action Plan for the Development of a National Greenhouse Gas Offset Protocol for Tidal Wetlands Restoration and Management,” developed by a National Blue Ribbon Panel of national experts in wetlands science, carbon markets, and public policy, examines the scientific, methodological, and policy hurdles that still must be overcome, and charts a “roadmap” for the next phase of offset protocol development.

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Solving the Mystery of MPA Performance

World Wildlife Fund’s Kathryn Fuller Science for Nature Symposium

Solving the Mystery of MPA Performance

Date: November 5th, 2010

For more information and Pre-registration details: http://www.worldwildlife.org/science/fellowships/fuller/fuller-symposium-2010.html

Location: Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC

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El Sallum, the first Egyptian MPA in the Mediterranean

Egypt's prime Minister declared the first Mediterranean MPA on 27 February 2010 in accordance to the Egyptian law for Natural Protectorates (102/1983) and at the request of the minister of state for environmental affairs Eng. Magid George. It is the 28th nature protectorate in Egypt but the first on the Mediterranean coast.

Located in the Gulf of Sallum on the western coast close to the border with Libya, the area is one of the last nearly pristine area remaining in the Egyptian Mediterranean. It includes exceptional biodiversity and a unique cultural heritage that are unfortunately subject to increasing pressures and threats from the rapid development of economic activities.

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Draft Report on Attaining an Operational Marine Biodiversity Observation Network Available for Review and Comment

The Biodiversity Ad Hoc Group of the Interagency Working Group on Ocean Partnerships (IWG-OP) hosted a workshop on Attaining Operational Marine Biodiversity Observations in May 2010 in Washington, DC. The workshop was held at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership and was attended by more than 35 experts in the marine science field. The goal of the workshop was to determine the status of current marine biodiversity observational capabilities and to scope future solutions to operationally monitor the status and trends of biodiversity.

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Malta designates four new marine protected areas

The linked article gives information about four new marine protected areas which the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) has designated. The protected sites cover over 18,000 hectares and provide protection for over 80% of the Maltese Posidonia beds which not only offer shelter for various marine species but also act as a carbon sink and protect sandy beaches from sand depletion.

The full article can be found at: http://www.mepa.org.mt/news-details?id=617