Marine NZ

The Economics of Marine Protected Areas
Author(s): Allen Consulting Group

This 2009 report uses bio-economic modelling to measure the economic potential of a network of marine protected areas, applying the principals to Australia’s South West Bioregion. The findings show the combination of fishery buffer benefits, spillovers for commercial and recreational fishing and increased ecotourism are likely to outweigh losses due to recreational and commercial fishers displacement.

Stocking Up: Securing our Marine Economy
Author(s): Centre for Policy Development - Australia

Our oceans are often out of sight, but that doesn’t mean they should be out of mind. Australia is surrounded by a vast wealth of oceans with the world’s third largest marine estate. Australian waters have the highest marine biodiversity in the world and it’s marine economy supports thousands of regional jobs through commercial fishing, marine tourism and recreational fishing. Yet official accounts record only a fraction of the real, long-term value of our oceans.

In a ground-breaking new report, CPD’s Sustainable Economy program reveals a shortfall in official accounts of $25 billion per year. The oceans contribute at least this much to the national economy in ecosystem services – such as carbon storage, fish nursery services and recreational fishing – free of charge.

Stocking Up: Securing Our Marine Economy is the first in a series of reports that will look at how different sectors of Australia’s economy can benefit from policies to preserve the environment and resources that sustain them.

KEY FINDINGS
In a national first, Stocking Up assesses the economic value of Australia’s oceans and finds:

Our oceans provide an unrecognised $25 billion in value every year to our national economy – billions of dollars that are currently unaccounted for in official statistics. 
The value of sustainably managed Australian fisheries could increase by 42% over 20 years if global fish stocks collapse.
Stocking Up fills a gap between the scientific knowledge of our oceans and the poor understanding of the economic and social value they provide, showing how we can secure marine jobs today and in the future by maintaining the value of the assets that these jobs rely on.

The report measures essential ecosystems services provided ‘free of charge’ by our oceans, such as:

$15.8 billion a year in carbon storage. Seagrasses store 10 to 40 times as much carbon per hectare as forests. Australia’s seagrass meadows are the largest in the world.
$6.2 billion a year in fish nursery services, pest and disease control. These services are crucial for our commercial fishing industry.
$1.85 billion per year in fish and recreation enjoyed by the 1 in 5 Australians who go fishing at least once a year
REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS
Stocking Up recommends five simple measures to secure our marine resources for all Australians; support long-term jobs in commercial fishing and marine tourism; and provide better catches for recreational fishers:

Protect the assets that underpin our marine estate – We must treat our marine estate as a portfolio of valuable ecological assets. We need to balance our investment portfolio across a well-managed commercial fishing estate; marine protected areas and highly protected areas.
Rebuild fish stocks – We need to take better care of fish stocks to reduce the risk of collapse. While management measures for our Commonwealth fisheries provide a strong foundation for reducing over-fishing, 42 per cent of our fisheries remain in an over-fished or unknown state.
Ensure all commercial fisheries are sustainably managed - We need to adjust economic incentives to avoid poverty traps for commercial fishers and loss of resources for tourism and recreation. Around half of Commonwealth fisheries are currently struggling to cope with economic pressure from rising fuel prices, a high Australian dollar and increased competition.
Establish baseline data for recreational catch and biomass in undisturbed ecosystems - We need better information to avoid sudden collapse of ecosystems. While our knowledge of many commercial fisheries has improved, we don’t have enough information on recreational catch and on how marine ecosystems function to manage multiple pressures well.
Support local communities through marketing and business innovation – We need innovations in marketing and business models to help local economies find opportunities from changing market demand and resource availability
As global fish stocks decline and the risk of ecosystem collapse grows worldwide, Australia can still take action to secure the third largest and most diverse marine estate in the world. This would support long-term jobs for commercial fishers, secure marine resources for tourism development, and provide better catches for recreational fishers.

In Stocking Up we’ve brought common-sense thinking to the question of how we can develop a thriving marine economy over the long term. It’s not a trivial question.

As the world heads into challenging times, Australia must make smart and informed decisions about how to navigate the waters ahead. These decisions need to be driven by the value of our oceans and the people who rely on them, not by politics.

Marine Protected Areas News July-August 2011
Author(s): MPA News

MPA NEWS, Vol. 13, No. 1 (July-August 2011)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Marine Mammal Protected Areas: What Makes Them Special, and How Their
Management Can Be Advanced

UN Working Group Recommends Path toward Multilateral Agreement on High Seas
Conservation, Including MPAs

Letter to the Editor: Well-Managed Trawl Fishery Would Be Disproportionately
Impacted by SW Australian MPAs

Notes & News: Guide on EBM - World Heritage - China - Canada - Mediterranean

Finding the Role of the Antarctic Toothfish in the Ross Sea Ecosystem
Author(s): NIWA

This NIWA Water and Atmosphere article from 2007 tells how NIWA scientists Matt Pinkerton, Stuart Hanchet, and Janet Bradford-Grieve have been piecing together the puzzle of Antarctic ecology to understand the potential effects of fishing for Antarctic toothfish.

Mysterious Orca
Author(s): Dr. Ingrid Visser

In this fascinating Forest & Bird article from 2001 Dr. Ingrid Visser - NZ and international pioneer in Orca research - tells of the many mysteries remaining about Orca populations after 9 years of research. 

MPA News Jan_Feb 2011, number 118
Author(s): MPA News

MPA NEWS, Vol. 12, No. 4 (January-February 2011)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Comparing Two Methods of Building MPA Networks: One Site at a Time vs. All at
Once
Network Launched for Managers of Very Large MPAs
MPA Perspective: Autonomous Vessels Offer New Tool for MPA Research and
Enforcement
Letters to the Editor
Science Spotlight: Studies on Larval Export, MPA Impacts on Communities
Notes & News: MPA web domains for sale - Purse seine closures - California -
Raja Ampat - US - IMCC2 - MPAs in fisheries management

MPA News Vol 12 November_December 2010
Author(s): MPA News

MPA NEWS, Vol. 12, No. 3 (November-December 2010)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
With Global MPA Coverage Falling Short of 10% Target, Biodiversity Summit
Extends Deadline
Views on Global MPA Coverage and the 10% Target: Interview with Kristina Gjerde
and Mark Spalding
More Outputs from the Convention on Biological Diversity Meeting: Publications,
Awards, Debt Swap
Large New MPAs Designated in North Atlantic, South America, Western Australia
Five-Year Study Releases Findings on Effects of MPAs
Program to Help Displaced Fishers Ends Up Costing 25 Times More than Planned
Letters to the Editor: On Chagos, MPA terminology
Notes & News: Carbon-neutral MPA - Shark sanctuaries - Plastic in MPAs -
French-funded MPAs - Applying IUCN categories - Parks Canada
Reef Resilience: Management Tips to Prepare for Ocean Acidification
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MPA News July/August 2010
Author(s): MPA News

MPA NEWS, Vol. 12, No. 1 (July-August 2010)

Table of Contents
Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill: The Experiences of MPA Managers So Far, and What Lessons Can Be Learned
Is Offshore Drilling Worth the Environmental Risk of Spills?
How Close Is the MPA Field to Meeting Its Global Targets?
MPA Perspective: Standardizing the Effective Management of MPAs in Italy By Carlo Franzosini, Marco Costantini, Saul Ciriaco, Maurizio Spoto
Notes & News: Large no-take areas - Albania - US - Canada - Russia - Vietnam -
IMCC2 - MPA size and spacing - Enforcement - Coral reef monitoring
Building Resilience: Communicating Bleaching Incidents to Stakeholders

Pacific Islands regional guidelines for Whale and Dolphin watching 2008
Author(s): South Pacific Whale Research Consortium

Whale Watching Guidelines

Report on Annual meeting of the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium
Author(s): South Pacific Whale Research Consortium

This report from the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium is for the consideration of the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission