This article is the second of a six-part bi-weekly series culminating in an editorial piece advocating for an integrated ocean policy for Malaysia.

PART 2: MARINE PROTECTED AREAS (MPAs)

The oceans have taken care of us for generations. They are one of our biggest sources of natural capital, accounting for 70% of the earth’s surface. All of us, directly and indirectly, are dependent on the oceans – from the air we breathe, the food we eat, to jobs and livelihoods. Unfortunately, decades of uncontrolled exploitation of our ocean resources has resulted in escalating pollution-induced climate change, allowed the exacerbation of plastic pollution, caused the collapse of many fisheries, destroyed biodiversity and in the end, negatively impacted our economy and social wellbeing.

If the Covid-19 pandemic is any indication, we have proven that we are capable of large-scale urgent change. The World Economic Forum now ranks biodiversity loss and human-made environmental disasters among the top-five risks to the global economy over the next 10 years.

In an independent report published in July 2020, over 100 economists and scientists found that the benefits of protecting at least 30% of the world’s land and oceans (instead of the current 10% of marine areas targeted under the Convention on Biological Diversity – Aichi Targets) outweigh the costs by a ratio of at least 5-to-1. The report offers new evidence that the nature conservation sector drives economic growth, delivers key non-monetary benefits, is a net contributor to a resilient global economy, and could address the alarming collapse of the natural world.

The updated zero draft Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework commissioned by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) took note of these findings and sets out an ambitious plan to transform society’s relationship with biodiversity and has drafted a target that by 2030, at least 30% of the planet is protected and conserved. If approved, member states, including Malaysia, will have to commit to this target.

Investing in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a proven form of ocean protection that encompass the protective management of naturally sensitive and biodiverse areas. They are created by delineating zones with permitted and non-permitted uses within those zones. In Malaysia, the establishment and protection of marine parks and marine reserves is governed by the Fisheries Act 1985 (Part IX).

As of 2020, we have failed to achieve the 10% protection target for coastal and marine areas set out under the Aichi Target 11. Globally, only 7% of the oceans have been designated as marine protected areas, and as a nation, Malaysia has managed to protect only 2.8% of its waters.

The prospect of having 30% of all land and sea protected raises a concern that expanding an already under-funded global protected system could lead to the creation of more “paper parks”, which hits the political targets but fails to achieve the intention of saving biodiversity.

For such an ambitious target, implementation must be followed by strong commitments from all parties concerned. The cost of inaction or minimum action cannot be underestimated and ignored. Adequate financial investment is key to achieve the 30% target. The same independent report estimated that the annual investment needed for an expanded 30% protected areas system is between $103 - $178 billion (including investing in the existing system). With adequate investments, managers can step up activities to increase recognition of MPAs and gain buy-in from local communities and other stakeholders, put in place management plans, conduct monitoring programs and enforcement activities to address threats such as marine plastic litter.

Managing MPAs the co-management way: Empowering local communities, minimising conflicts and managing threats to the marine ecosystem.

This article looks at the potential of decentralising management rights of protected areas to local communities as an effective means to assist managers running significantly larger and connected protected areas in the next decade. This approach gives value to the knowledge of local communities in improving the management of protected areas, and consequently encourages local participation and buy-in, thus reducing conflicts. This form of management is also known as the ‘co-management’ approach where management responsibilities are shared (formally or informally and with varying power-sharing degrees) among government and non-government actors.

An example of a variant to the “co-management” approach in Malaysia is the Reef Care program in Tioman Island, Pahang, Malaysia. The Department of Fisheries partnered with Reef Check Malaysia (RCM), and the Tioman Marine Conservation Group (TMCG) to co-manage an estimated area of 0.98km2 located in Tekek Village (Kg. Tekek). It is an arrangement where local actors (including communities, resorts/chalets, boats, and dive shops operators) are given limited responsibility for maintaining a defined area of coral reef adjacent to the coastal areas where the stakeholders are located.

The Reef Care program in Tioman centres around three main activities:

communication, education, and public awareness (CEPA)
promotion of responsible boating practices within the program site to minimise damage to marine life
promote responsible sewage and waste treatment to reduce pollution on reefs

The program successfully instilled a sense of ownership and awareness among the local communities so much so that they can make informed decisions to report incidences of illegal activities to the authorities.

Although small in size, with adequate financial investment, well-defined policy direction and clear governance structure, Reef Care has the potential to be scaled-up in anticipation of an increase in protected areas within the next 10 years.

MPAs are strategically positioned to act on the marine debris crisis.

Marine debris, marine litter or ocean trash is one of the most visible threats to ocean health. Plastics make up 80% of all marine debris from surface waters to deep-sea sediments Every year, 8 million metric tons of plastics enter our oceans on top of the estimated 150 million metric tons that currently circulate in our marine environments. Compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, in 2020, an estimated 1.56 billion masks would have ended up in the oceans and it takes around 450 years for the masks to fully decompose releasing untold amounts of microplastics into the ocean system.

It is a marine pollution crisis that endangers not only the marine environment and animals; plastic materials eventually breaks down into microplastics, which seep into our food chain and cause all sorts of health issues, and bring about economic disruption particularly to the tourism and fishery industry.

Marine protected areas are not spared either.

Experts believe that MPAs have incentives to engage with marine debris while possessing key advantages that strategically position them to act on this issue. Many sites around the world have taken up the call to address this problem.

Some of the incentives for MPAs to address this crisis head-on include

vulnerability to impacts – it provides an incentive to prevent and mitigate debris-related harm
geographic focus and coverage – MPAs provide a specific geographic frame with goals to protect even more habitat by 2030 by setting goals for marine debris prevention and mitigation. It can serve as a focal point to raising awareness of the problem
management – existing management tools and platforms provide an opportunity to direct scientific and management resources towards the issue, and lessons applicable to marine debris may also help inform management and communication of other transboundary issues like climate change or invasive species
stakeholder & partner connections – it brings together existing site users, stakeholders, partners, and networks to support action addressing the marine debris crisis

One excellent example of using MPAs as a platform to address the crisis is the ghost nets removal activities in Tioman Island. Leveraging on an existing network of stakeholders, with the Tioman Marine Conservation Group (TMCG) as the anchor, local partners and government agencies participated in 24 ghost net removal activities over 10 months from January to October 2020 collecting an estimated total net weight of 2,780kg.

MPAs hold the potential to achieve many of the SDG targets and are proving to be an indispensable tool for ensuring a prosperous and healthy future for all. And as we expand their reach in the next decade, we must also be mindful of the communities affected by the conservation decisions.