: Our oceans have been plagued by many diseases and now a global plan has been launched to protect 18 million square kilometers of maritime area, which has been dubbed the ‘Blue Nature Alliance’.
Behind it are a number of organizations and charities that will work together on the project for five years. Initially, work will be done on the protection and restoration of three major naval sites, the Laos Sea Escape near Fiji, the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, and the Tristan de Cunha in the South Atlantic.
“Our oceans are in crisis and their nature is very complex,” said Karen Sack, head of the Blue Nature Alliance’s Ocean Unit. The global plan will focus on conserving key marine areas and enhancing natural sites. In the meantime, local populations will be included in the plan.
Tony Verby, CEO of another Mandero Foundation, said: “This partnership will help us move in the right direction for a larger mission.”
Scientists agree that if our oceans are healthy and clean, then human survival depends on them. Pollution and plastic waste are rapidly spreading into the sea and are now killing large numbers of animals. We humans are dumping 640,000 tons of garbage and plastic into the sea every year. There are also old fishing nets, from whales to turtles.
The oceans provide us with food and half the world’s oxygen. Then global warming and climate change are increasing the heat of the oceans. On the other hand, coral reefs and coral reefs are being destroyed which are often the nurseries and homes of marine life. Then the sea level is rising all over the world and the waves are cutting the beaches.
Under the agreement, a significant 30 percent of the maritime and coastal areas will be saved immediately, with the support of the United Nations. In addition, Marine Protected Areas (YPAs) or MPAs will be increased and appropriate resources will be spent.
Although the goal was to secure 10 percent of the world’s oceans by 2020, the target was only 7.65. However, since 1985, the number of protected maritime areas has increased from 430 to 18,500, which is a good step.
But fishing, mining and drilling are still going on in very large MPAs. That is why experts have expressed skepticism over the scheme of declaring maritime areas as protected areas despite this hardship. Coral reefs in these areas are suffering from acidity and destruction.
On the other hand, there is still a widespread perception that saving marine habitats and areas could be of great benefit to endangered marine life and that the breeding of rare animals could continue there. However, the Blue Nature Alliance’s move Environmentalists have generally praised.
