With the current environmental situation of the world, different initiatives and projects have been presented to minimize the effects of climate change and to make the world more resilient with uncontrollable natural phenomena.
Along with the upcoming Conference of the Parties in Marrakech, Morocco happening this November 8 to 16, 2016, it is a great victory for the whole world and for those working for the betterment of the environment after the negotiations in making the Antartica's Ross Sea the largest marine protected area in the whole world.
A negotiation towards a multinational agreement is such a good news for the whole planet as it aims to preserve one of the most pristine ecosystems in the world. This Friday, all the nations consisting the Commission for the Conservation of Antartic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) will be signing the huge deal making the Ross Sea the largest Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the continent.
The negotiation was initiated by the United States of America in partnership with the government of New Zealand. As the leaders and management of the Commission for the Conservation of Antartic Marine Living Resources sign the said milestone agreement, it is expected to come into force next year, December 2017.
Through the implementation of the agreement, the 600,000 square miles of the Ross Sea will impose a 35-year ban on commercial fishing, from 2017 to 2052. The size of the Ross Sea is known to be six times the size of the United Kingdom and such area will be preserved for the next generations to come.
Also, the agreement stands firm against the possible mineral exploitation in the area. As a result, the agreement also covers putting an off limit zone in the reported ecosystem area to have increase biodiversity.
It was a great legacy and a victory to Lewis Pugh, a British endurance swimmer who started his own Speedo Diplomacy that finally, one of the largest ecosystems are to be preserved for the next 35 years.
"I'm absolutely overjoyed. This is a crucial first step in what I hope will be a series of marine protected areas around Antarctica, and in other parts of the High Seas around the world," Lewis said.
