Last night the BES’s Policy Officer attended an event to celebrate the founding of the world’s largest Marine Protected Area (MPA), around the Chagos Archipelago. The programme of talks and networking was organised by the Chagos Conservation Trust, a charitable trust which, with other partners in the Chagos Environment Network, including the RSPB, Royal Society and Pew Environment Group, actively promote conservation of the Chagos. The highlights of the evening however were however two short films which showcased the huge biological diversity of the seas around the Chagos, with turtles, sharks, rays and a huge number of fish species caught on camera. The films also made clear the diversity of avian and crustacean species inhabiting the islands.

The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office designated the waters around the Chagos as a Marine Protected Area on 1st April 2010, following a consultation to which the BES responded. The last license to fish in the seas around the Chagos expired at the end of October, meaning that from the 1st November this year, all fishing is prohibited. The Chagos MPA encompasses more than 500,000 km2 of the Indian Ocean, one of the most heavily fished and degraded oceans in the world. At this size, the MPA represents 13% of all oceans held in protected areas worldwide (which currently equate to 1.12% of oceans, with only 0.08% having total protection, as ‘no take’ zones). At the CBD in Nagoya in October this year, parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed to a target to designate 10% of the ocean’s surface as protected areas by 2020.

Perhaps the most interesting presentation of the evening was delivered by Carl Gustaf Lundin, Head of the IUCN Marine and Polar Programme. The presentation focused on how the MPA can now be taken forward, including priorities for research, the development of regulation and enforcement of the MPA as a no-take reserve. Mr Lundin suggested that ‘zoning’ could be a useful approach to regulation, as in the Great Barrier Reef, proposing that tourism could be allowed in certain areas to provide money to support conservation. He saw enforcement as the priority for the MPA in the next couple of years, suggesting that a lenient attitude had been adopted to date with regard to illegal fishing: he stressed that even the smallest fishing vessels should be stopped.

Following Mr Lundin’s presentation, a representative from the FCO stood up to say a few words. He stressed the commitment of the Coalition Government to the conservation of the MPA in the Chagos, but highlighted the political realities impinging upon the success of the project – mainly relationships with the countries neighbouring the MPA (particularly Mauritius, which does not respect UK sovereignity over the British Indian Ocean Territory). The ongoing legal challenge in the European Court of Human Rights regarding the right of Chagossian Islanders to return to the islands was also highlighted an issue of which to be aware. A judicial review has been sought by some Chagossians regarding the designation of the MPA.

Overall it is clear that challenges lie ahead for the Chagos MPA, particularly regarding illiegal fishing and providing finance for enforcement of the area’s protected status. However it is clear that designation of the MPA is a very important step, both to safeguard the Chagos’ own phenomenal biodiversity and to provide a test bed for important scientific research, but also as an example which other nations can follow in order to reach the ambitious targets set at Nagoya.

The British Ecological Society recently submitted a response to a Foreign and Commonwealth Office consultation document supporting the creation of a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the Chagos Archipelago. In producing the response to the consultation, the BES recognised that there may be some conflict between conservation objectives and the potential resettlement of the islands, by Chagossians who were removed from the islands in the 1960s to allow the US to establish a military base.

In February 2010 the report of a workshop was released, which considered the socio-economic issues relating to the establishment of an MPA in the Chagos Archipelago. The workshop was held on 7th January at Royal Holloway, University of London, and follows on from a scientific workshop on the same topic at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton in August 2009. Participants were invited to the workshop on the basis of their involvement or interests in Chagos, including representatives from the Chagossian Social Committee in the UK, Chagos Refugees Group Mauritius, and UK Chagos Support Association. All participants agreed that establishing an MPA recognises the importance and value of the Chagos Archipelago and is an important opportunity to provide long-term protection. The chair of the Chagos Islands (BIOT) All Party Parliamentary Group explained that the number of Chagossians wishing to return is small and hence there should not be a conflict with marine conservation.

However it was emphasised that the MPA proposal must not be used in such a way that detracts from the rights of the Chagossians. Participants agreed that the process must be done in such a way that allows the consideration of future issues with respect to resettlement or changes in jurisdiction. Some proposed the establishment of an MPA that makes provision for sustainable utilisation of natural resources if Chagossians resettle some of the islands. Many participants also voiced the opinion that representatives of Chagos and Mauritius should be closely involved in the MPA discussions, and were concerned that the initial exclusion of these groups may have already undermined the process. Since establishing a no-take MPA will require enforcement, this would certainly require involvement of Chagossians and Mauritians in MPA planning. Discussions in the workshop also raised the issue that economic analysis had been based on the current situation and did not take account of the costs of benefits of potential Chagossian resettlement or change of sovereignty.

Overall, the conclusion of the workshop was that the establishment of an MPA in the Chagos Archipelago should be done in such a way that involves all stakeholders in order to create a robust conservation area that can withstand future challenges.

The BES Policy Team last night attended a meeting and reception organised by the Chagos Environment Network, highlighting the importance of designating the Chagos Archipelago (otherwise known as the British Indian Ocean Territory, or ‘BIOT’) as a highly protected marine reserve. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office earlier this month announced a consultation on the formation of a Marine Protected Area in Chagos – which closes on 12 February.

Presentations from Professor Carl Lundin (IUCN) and Professor Charles Sheppard (Warwick University) highlighted the pristine marine environment of Chagos, whist Alastair Gammell, Pew Environment Group, encouraged all present to respond robustly to the UK Government’s consultation. Professor Lundin began by comparing the relative numbers of protected areas designated on land and at sea. Over the past 125 years, over 125,000 protected areas have been created on land; a relative success story. At sea however, despite many international commitments to create protected areas (Convention on Biological Diversity: designate 10% of signatories’ Exclusive Economic Zones as protected by 2010; World Parks Congress: designate 20% of the world’s oceans by 2020; OSPAR and the World Congress on Sustainable Development, for example), based on the current trajectory society is on in actually putting these into practice, we will not achieve the CBD targets until 2047 and the World Parks Congress targets until the 2080’s.

All speakers stressed that the Chagos offer an opportunity to achieve something which could not be achieved elsewhere; the conservation of a near-pristine coral reef system, largely removed from stressors such as pollution and over-fishing. Although climate change poses a severe risk to the reefs, the absence of these other stressors mean that the reef is more resilient to change: for example, in the severe coral reef bleaching event in 1998 (caused by the El Nino phenomenon), 50% of corals in Chagos died. However, now many are recovering: a recovery not seen elsewhere (for example in the Seychelles, where 98% of corals were killed through bleaching). Conserving the reefs now could ‘buy thirty years’, in the words of one of the speakers, in which fisheries outside the MPA would be supported, endangered species could find a haven and scientists could conduct vital research.

Introducing a Marine Protected Area in Chagos would allow scientists access to a fantastic resource, offering scope for exploration of the largely unstudied deep sea areas of the archipelago and offering a control site against which interventions to tackle degradation, and climate change, in other reef systems could be assessed. In addition, the Chagos sits on the Southern Equatorial current, so plays a vital role in re-stocking the fisheries and reefs of the Seychelles and Mauritius.

Despite these benefits, final comments from a representative of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office stressed that by no means was the designation of a Marine Protected Area in Chagos certain. He cautioned against the creation of a ‘paper park’, meaning that whatever is put in place must be adequately resourced and policed. The official did not quote a figure for how much this may cost, but acknowledged that greater resource than available in Chagos at the moment would be needed. The FCO consultation quotes a figure of £1 million – already at odds with the figure quoted by Alastair Gammell, during the discussion session, of £2 – 3 million. The legal status of Chagos – which is due to be ceded back to Mauritius when no longer needed for military purposes – and of the Chagossian people, awaiting a verdict from the European Court of Human Rights as to their right to return to their homeland, also create issues which the Government needs to manage extremely sensitively.

Nevertheless, the fact that the UK Government is consulting the scientific community and others about plans for a Marine Protected Area is a very positive step. Much of the content of the consultation came out of a meeting of the Chagos Conservation Network at the Royal Society earlier this year and the presence of officials from both Defra and FCO at the meeting last night was a positive sign. If the whole of Chagos was declared a Marine Protected Area this would increase by tenfold the areas held in MPAs in the Indian Ocean and if, additionally, the Chagos MPA were to be a ‘no-take’ zone, this would double the total area of the world’s oceans treated in this way; a fantastic legacy for the UK Government.

Tristan Albatross chicks are raised exclusively on Gough Island, a UK Overseas Territory. Sadly they are being predated by ‘killer mice’ at such an unprecedented rate the species faces imminent extinction unless urgent action is taken.

Government funding to tackle the introduced mouse epidemic on Gough Island is severely lacking, despite strong recommendations from two Select Committees calling for the problem to be urgently tackled: “biodiversity found in the UK Overseas Territories is equally valuable and at a greater risk of loss [than the UK].” Simply eradicating mice from the island would resolve the problem: albatross chicks face the horrific death of being eaten alive by mice whilst still on the nest.

RSPB scientist Richard Cuthbert has researched the mice problem on Gough Island since 2000. Speaking about the latest results he said:

“We’ve known for a long time that the mice were killing albatross chicks in huge numbers. However, we now know that the albatrosses have suffered their worst year on record.

“The mice do not affect the adult albatrosses, but we know from our work that these are being killed by long line fishing vessels at sea. So, unsustainable numbers of this bird are being killed on land and at sea. Without conservation efforts, the Tristan albatross is doomed.”

The Gough bunting – endemic to the island – faces the same threat and is equally at risk. A recent survey showed that of 1764 incubated Albatross eggs on the island, only 246 chicks survived to fledgling, an astonishingly low 14%.

The House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee on Halting Biodiversity Loss, published a statement recently backing calls by the RSPB saying:

“One of the most important contributions that the Government could make to halting biodiversity loss would be to provide more support for the UK Overseas Territories, where it is the eleventh hour for many species. Although England has a number of internationally important species and habitats, the biodiversity found in the UK Overseas Territories is equally valuable and at a greater risk of loss. The Government must act now to protect these areas.”

This view was backed up by the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee for the UK Overseas Territories who stated in June: “The environmental funding currently being provided by the UK to the Overseas Territories appears grossly inadequate and we recommend that it should be increased.”

The British Ecological Society is a member of the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum and fully supports the position of the Select Committees in calling for urgent funds to be allocated for efforts to eradicate mice from Gough Island.

The Environmental Audit Committee has today published its report into ‘Halting UK Biodiversity Loss’. The Committee call for a new approach to address dramatic declines in biodiversity across England and in the UK’s Overseas Territories (OTs).

The Committee find that the Government is on course to miss the key target to halt biodiversity loss by 2010, with many species and habitats facing severe declines and local extinctions across England. The Committee has particularly criticised the Government’s policies with respect to the UK’s OTs; it’s failure to act in relation to previous recommendations of the Committee to protect the environment of the territories means that the biodiversity of these areas now faces its ‘eleventh hour’.

The Committee call upon the Government to adopt an ecosystems approach to conservation, taking into account the implications of the policy of all Government Departments for the natural environment when making decisions and thinking beyond simply a ‘protected area’ approach to conservation. The Committee welcome the Government’s decision to conduct an ecosystem assessment for England, but state that this should be just a first-step to a wider cross-departmental initiative.

Calling on the Government to take urgent action to protect the environment of the UK’s Territories, Tim Yeo MP, Committee Chair, said: “One of the most important contributions the Government could make to slow the catastrophic global diversity loss currently occurring, would be to accept its environmental responsibility for our Overseas Territories.” The Committee recommend that responsibility for the OTs is transferred from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to Defra.

See Full Report
Read the joint BES- Institute of Biology response to the consultation on ‘Halting UK Biodiversity Loss’

The IUCN, the world conservation union, has today produced a publication examining the challenges facing the 28 overseas entities of the European Union. The release of “Climate Change and Biodiversity in the EU Overseas Entities” coincides with the start of a five day conference on Reunion Island, where delegates will discuss strategies to counter climate change and biodiversity loss.

EU overseas entities (including the UK’s overseas territories and crown dependencies) are, in the main, small tropical islands. Many depend on the integrity of their natural environment to provide employment in fishing, tourism or in the trade of natural products. Many are threatened by climate change and sea level rise, unsustainable development of infrastructure for recreation and leisure, unsustainable fishing practices and over exploitation of natural resources. These factors pose tremendous threats to the many endemic species which are found in these areas.

The BES is a member of the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum (UKOTCF) which exists to promote the conservation of the species and habitats of the UK’s Overseas Territories. It acts as a central point of liaison between NGOs and Government in the UK and in the Territories. The BES is present at the IUCN conference in Reunion as an observer.

View Live Webcast of IUCN Reunion Conference: 7 – 11 July 2008