Marine Protected Area - Management and Restrictions

Management and Restrictions

Typical restrictions in MPAs include ones on fishing, oil and gas mining and tourism. Other restrictions may limit the use of ultrasonic devices like SONAR (which may confuse the guidance system of cetaceans), development, construction and the like. Some fishing restrictions include what are called "no-take" zones, which means that no fishing is allowed. Less than 1% of MPAs are no-take in the United States. Ship transit can also be regulated or banned, either as a preventive measure or to avoid direct disturbance to certain species. The degree to which environmental regulations affect shipping varies according to whether MPAs are located in territorial waters, exclusive economic zones, or the high seas. The law of the sea regulates these limits.

For this reason, most MPAs have been located in territorial waters, where enforcement can be ensured. However, MPAs can also be established in a state's exclusive economic zone and in international waters. For example, Italy, France and Monaco in 1999 jointly established a cetacean sanctuary in the Ligurian Sea named the Pelagos Sanctuary for Mediterranean Marine Mammals. This sanctuary includes both national and international waters. Both the CBD and IUCN recommend that a variety of possible management systems be considered when designing a protected area system. They advocate that MPAs be seen as one of many "nodes" in a network of protected areas. The following are the most commonly used individual types of management systems for MPAs;

Seasonal and temporary management
Activities, most critically fishing, are restricted seasonally or temporarily to let the area recover. Seasonal limits are put in place to protect fish populations during vital periods like spawning season.

Multiple-use
Increasingly, multiple use MPAs are the most common and arguably the most effective type of MPA. These areas employ two or more types, which enables flexibility for the most important sections get the highest protection. A common practice is to make the most critical area a no take zone, and surrounding it with areas of lesser protections.

Community involvement and related approaches
Community-managed MPAs empower local communities to manage marine resources partially or completely independent of the governmental jurisdictions they inhabit. They are not always officially recognized, depending on the political environment. Empowering communities to manage resources can lower conflict levels and help fisheries recover. This approach can provide direct influence for all involved, including subsistence and commercial fishers, scientists, tourism businesses, youths and others.

MPA networks

"A group of MPAs that interact with one another ecologically and/or socially form a network." These MPA Networks are intended to connect individuals and MPAs through the ecosystem and promote education and cooperation among various administrations and people with invested interest in the state of the MPA. "MPA networks are, from the perspective of resource users, intended to address both environmental and socio-economic needs, complementary ecological and social goals and designs need greater research and policy support.". Some communities associated with MPAs in the Philippines connect with one another to share information about MPAs, creating an even larger network through the social communities' support. Emerging or established MPA networks can be found in Southeast Australia, Belize, the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Mexico.