Professor Roberts added: “We were on the cusp of a protected area that could offer a world-class refuge for wildlife, far away from many other human disturbances. It is still possible. All it would require is for government to enact a total ban on industrial fishing around the South Sandwich Islands, to bring it in line with international standards on marine protected areas.”
The Blue Belt Charter, which calls for greater protection of waters around UK Overseas Territories, estimates that 87 per cent of the ocean around the South Sandwich Islands has been directly impacted by human activities such as shipping and industrial fishing for species such as krill.
It says that even around the far-flung Pitcairn Islands in the eastern Pacific Ocean, only 15 percent of waters have survived as wilderness.
Professor Roberts pointed out that waters around the South Sandwich Islands – where thousands of chinstrap penguins live alongside elephant seals and albatrosses – contain unexplored deep sea ridges and hot water springs, thought to contain creatures that have as yet to be discovered.
“The government says more science is needed to justify further protection. But we know enough to be sure this environment is rich and fragile and needs to be protected without delay,” he said.
The call for greater protection of the South Sandwich Islands has won support across all parties.
Theresa Villiers, the Conservative former Northern Ireland Secretary backed the call by the Blue Belt Charter, saying “we need radical action to clean up our oceans”.
She added: “Full protection of the seas around the South Sandwich Islands could play a big part in delivering that goal. I want the UK Government to maintain the pressure on the authorities in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands to deliver this.
“It is disappointing that so far they have only committed to protection of a fifth of the area highlighted by Blue Belt Charter. That is not good enough. We need bolder change if we are to save precious ocean wildlife and habitats.”
from Nettech News http://bit.ly/2LBlLnm
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