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 Related Knowledge (47)
 5 SUB-TOPICS:
 Funding for MPAs Funding for MPAs
 Marine Protected Areas in the Pacific Islands Marine Protected Areas in the Pacific Islands
 NOS/NOAA's Role in Protected Areas NOS/NOAA's Role in Protected Areas
 Protection targets Protection targets
 Types of MPA Types of MPA
 Topic Overview
 ID# : 2636
 Visits: 9987
 Added: 01-Jan-2000
 Updated: 15-Dec-2010
  E-Mail Topic link
 Editors
 UNEP - WCMC
 Jacob Nganyi
 UNEP - GPA
 Heidi Savelli
 
 
 
 
Protected Areas Maintained by UNEP  
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The definition of a protected area, as adopted by IUCN, is: an area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective means. Although all protected areas meet the general purposes contained in this definition, in practice the precise purposes for which protected areas are managed differ greatly.
 
The benefits of establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) are well known, particularly for coral reefs. A reduction in fishing pressure, ideally through the complete closure of selected areas to all types of fishing, typically maintains more numerous and diverse populations of previously targeted species, leads to the reappearance of species absent from fishing grounds and substantially increases the biomass of large predatory species. There can also be positive effects on coral reef habitat with increased coral cover and structural complexity.
 
The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is a global database of protected areas maintained as a collaboration the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and the UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre. This is the only comprehensive global list of protected areas, and contains links to descriptive data describing important sites ('site sheets'), and GIS-data showing the distribution of sites, including mapped boundaries for a large number of locations. Information of more than 4000 MPAs is included in the World Database on Protected Areas, and site sheets have been completed for approximately 20% of these.
 
 
 
 
All   (47) News   (19) Events   (2) Websites   (11) Documents   (12) Books   (2) Contacts   (1)
  12 Documents 
  
United Nations List of National Parks and Protected Areas 1993 United Nations List of National Parks and Protected Areas. IUCN,...i + 313pp.  United Nations List of National Parks and Protected Areas 
global representative system of marine protected areas A global representative system of marine protected areas. Vols. I-IV. global representative system of marine protected areas 
A monograph on coastal and marine protected areas in Mexico Coastal and marine protected areas in Mexico A monograph on coastal and marine protected areas in Mexico 
Review of the socio-economic literature dedicated to various aspects of marine protected areas Economic analysis of marine protected areas. A literature review Review of the socio-economic literature dedicated to various aspects of marine ...  
Economic analysis of the use of MPAs operations Income requirements of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) Economic analysis of the use of MPAs operations 
A Study of Marine Protected Areas and Their Impact on Traditional Small-scale Fishing Communities in South Africa Marine Conservation and Coastal Communities: Who Carries the Costs? A Study of Marine Protected Areas and Their Impact on Traditional Small-scale F...  
Monograph on marine protected areas and artisanal fisheries in Brazil Marine Protected Areas and artisanal fisheries in Brazil Monograph on marine protected areas and artisanal fisheries in Brazil 
Monograph on marine protected areas in India Marine Protected Areas in India Monograph on marine protected areas in India 
An overview of the discussion of participants and backgrounds papers characterizing MPAs as a fisheries management tool from the June 2006 workshop Report and documentation of the Expert Workshop on Marine Protected A...siderations An overview of the discussion of participants and backgrounds papers characteri...  
In far eastern Indonesia, the Raja Ampat Islands embrace a phenomenal coral wilderness Ultra Marine In far eastern Indonesia, the Raja Ampat Islands embrace a phenomenal coral wil...  
979 Topics - 5229 Related Knowledge - 11257 Members - 47 Editors
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