Policy and conventions Flashcards
Habitats directive creates what policy?
SAC
How do you achieve international cooperation
United nations
In the decades following ww2 who had the biggest off-shore fishing fleet in the world?
Hull and grimsby
What did Iceland expand in 1958?
Iceland expanded exclusive fishing rights to 12 nautical miles excluding UK boats
What did Iceland claim in 1972?
Iceland claimed exclusive extended their rights out to 50 nm
What did Icelands extension out to 50nm lead to?
Conflicts between the Royal Navy and Icelandic boats
In 1975 how many NM did Iceland unilaterally increase to?
200nm
What did UNCLOS establish in 1982?
EEZ and defined territorial rights
What caused UNCLOS to form?
Fisheries disputes (cod war), risk of military conflict in offshore areas, integrated management of the ‘high seas’, rights to free transit passage in territorial water and obligation to protect the marine environment
What is Natural England?
An executive non-departmental public body (NDPB)
Who is NE sponsored by?
DEFRA
What is NE’s role?
To support the governments wider strategic policies and fulfil the aims and objectives set for us by DEFRAs secretary of state
What are NE responsibilities?
Help protect wildlife and landscapes, advising on the protection of the marine environment in inshore waters (0-12nm), improving public access to the coastline, managing 140 national nature reserves, providing planning advice and wildlife licences through the planning system, help restore or recreate wildlife habitats, providing evidence to help make decisions affecting the natural environment
What is a convention?
An international agreement between a number of countries, dealing with a specific subject of common concern
What is the Bern convention?
The convention on the conservation of European wildlife and natural habitats
When was the bern convention brought in?
1982 in switzerland
Where does the bern convention come into play in the uk?
Uk meets its obligations by means of the Birds directive and habitats directive
What is the Bonn convention?
The convention on the conservation of migratory species of wild animals (CMS)
When was the Bonn convention brought in?
1985 (worldwide convention)
What is the OSPAR convention?
The convention for the protecting of the marine environment of the North-east Atlantic
When was OSPAR ratified?
1998
What conventions did OSPAR replace?
Oslo convention and paris convention hence OsPar
What is the Ramsar convention?
the convention on wetlands of international importance especially as waterfowl habitat
When was the Ramsar convention ratified?
1975
What are the key drivers for marine protected area designations?
Natura 2000, OSPAR, CBD, marine and coastal access act 2009
What is the MMOs role?
Responsible for enforcing the general offence of damaging a MCZ and acts as an advisor to the regional projects and stakeholder groups
What can you designate as an MPA?
Marine reserves, marine conservation zones, special areas of conservation and special protection areas
What mobile species comes under SPAs?
Birds, mostly colonies
What mobile species comes under SACs?
Seals, dolphins, porpoise, whales and basking sharks
How did Brexit impact environmental legislation?
The Habitats directive was not implemented properly by the uk and the uk approach does not comply with EU law
What is unique about mobile marine species?
The move around between areas and habitats
What are the common mobile marine species?
fish, seabirds, turtles, marine mammals
What must MPA designs consider?
Representation, replication, size, dispersal/movement patterns, source-sink dynamics/open-closed population, displacement of fisheries effort and threats
What do you need for MPA design?
data, long term monitoring and favourable politics
Marine Protected area - steps
Identify the feature, survey feature, define protected area, set conservation objectives and targets, monitor then report results and review
What do you consider when considering a protected area for a mobile species?
What is the local, national and international legislation, what do we already know about the species, carry out focused fieldwork if needed, identify areas for protection and involve local stakeholders
Why is sound important in the sea?
sound travels 5 times faster underwater than in air and light penetrates only to shallow depths
What is sound and what is it measured in?
pressure wave and measured in frequency
What travels further? Low or high frequency?
Low
When is sound reflected?
Surface of warm water layer
When is sound refracted?
Cold layer of water
When is sound scattered?
When in cold water and hits an object
What comes under ‘natural noise’?
Earthquakes, ice, turbulence, waves breaking, rain, bubbles and spray and marine life
What are the ‘human noises’ in the ocean?
Shipping, naval activities, recreation, fisheries, science and construction
What legislation is noise classed as?
Pollution under the EU marine strategy framework directive
Who produces the guidelines on shipping noise?
International maritime organisation
What direct human physical disturbance towards mammals?
Fisheries bycatch, shipping and recreational boats, ecotourism and underwater noise pollution
What indirect human physical disturbance towards mammals?
Toxins, organic pollution, food web changes and climate change
What is Annex II?
species needing special measures of protection
What do you call the way to keep track of dolphins?
Capture-mark-recapture
What is the Allee effect?
A positive relationship between components of individual fitness and the density or abundance of conspecifics
What is included in the Allee effect?
Age structure, birth rate, reproductive females, interbirth intervals, following declining populations
What do coral reef ecosystems provide?
Biodiversity hotspots, protect coastal habitats and ecosystems, nursery grounds, feeding grounds, carbon sinks
What is the role of the grazers in reef communities?
being a predator (feeding on coral polyps), algal specialists, omnivorous with special mouth structures and digestive structures
What is the importance of a grazer?
high grazing rates, space clearing, clear coral rock of algae to provide spaces for settlement and maintain low standing crop of algae that would overgrow corals
What is needed to have a healthy reef?
Clear water, abundant coral and species diversity
What does overfishing lead to?
Removal of biological limits on algal growth leading to algae dominating which leads to phase shift
What is the phase shift? (overfishing)
macroalgal dominance leading to turbid water, limited coral and reduced biodiversity
What does removing top predators cause?
allows increase in mid-level predators, extra pressure on grazing fish and unable to keep up with algal growth
Why is the excess nutrients bad?
Corals prefer low nutrient conditions, high nutrients cause uncontrolled algal growth leading to outcompete corals which results in phase shift
What percentage of the world’s coral reefs have been destroyed?
20%
What percentage of coral reefs are at imminent risk of collapse from human pressures?
24%
What percentage of coral reefs are under long term threat?
26%
Where has the most damaged reefs?
SE asia, indian ocean and caribbean
What is the latin name for urchins?
diadema antillarium
What happens when there is a decrease in urchins?
increased algal cover and decline in reef biodiversity
How much has algal cover reduced from the recovery of urchins?
65%-5%
What is the latin name for the crown of thorns starfish?
Acanthaster planci
Why Conserve?
Ecosystem services lead to economic benefits and humans rely on biodiversity as well as the ethical right to conservse the marine environment.
What does shifting baseline syndrome mean?
Results in a drift away from true natural conditions and as a consequence a change in perception of ecological change varying from generation to generation
How many people rely on fish for at least 20% of their protein needs?
2.6 billion
Why do we need conservation?
overfishing, ocean acidification, habitat destruction, pollution and coastal development
What does sustainable management need to consider?
Needs to consider three key elements to succeed
What are the United Nations 3 pillars of sustainable development?
economic development, social, development and environmental protection
What is sustainable management?
management of the marine environment that encompasses all 3 pillars of sustainability
