Exploring the practical implementation of marine biodiversity offsetting in Australia.

Biodiversity offsetting with associated aims of no net loss of biodiversity (NNL) is an approach used to align economic development with conservation. Biodiversity offsetting may be more challenging in marine environments, with recent evidence suggesting that the current application of the approach in Australian marine environments rarely follows 'best practice' and is unlikely to be meeting stated policy aims. To understand how and why this deviation from best practice is taking place in marine systems, we analysed current practice in Australia through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 31 participants with professional experience in the development and implementation of associated policy. Thematic analysis of results indicated that, despite commitment to best practice in principle, practitioners recognised that operationalisation of marine biodiversity offsetting was inconsistent and unlikely to be meeting stated goals such as NNL. Participants described the central barrier to the adoption of best practice as the technical complexity of assessing and quantifying biodiversity losses and gains, and uncertainty in restoration in marine contexts. With offsetting described as an integral part of development consent for marine economic development, both these barriers and their navigation presents threats to users setting off a chain of accepted activity leading away from best practice. These threats were perceived to arise from low governmental capacity or prioritisation for environmental management, institutional needs for a social licence to operate, and overarching demands for economic growth. We conclude that marine biodiversity offsetting has come to be ambiguous in its practical definition, with a range of conflicting factors influencing its use and preventing the standardisation required to meet rigorous interpretations of best practice necessary to ensure biodiversity protection and NNL.

Marine protected dramas: the flaws of the Brazilian National System of Marine Protected Areas.

This article discusses the current problems and issues associated with the implementation of a National System of Marine Protected Areas in Brazil. MPA managers and higher governmental level authorities were interviewed about their perceptions of the implementation of a national MPA strategy and the recent changes in the institutional arrangement of government marine conservation agencies. Interviewees' narratives were generally pessimistic and the National System was perceived as weak, with few recognizable marine conservation outcomes on the ground. The following major flaws were identified: poor inter-institutional coordination of coastal and ocean governance; institutional crisis faced by the national government marine conservation agency; poor management within individual MPAs; problems with regional networks of marine protected areas; an overly bureaucratic management and administrative system; financial shortages creating structural problems and a disconnect between MPA policy and its delivery. Furthermore, a lack of professional motivation and a pessimistic atmosphere was encountered during many interviews, a malaise which we believe affects how the entire system is able to respond to crises. Our findings highlight the need for a better understanding of the role of 'leadership' in the performance of socio-ecological systems (such as MPA networks), more effective official evaluation mechanisms, more localized audits of (and reforms if necessary to) Brazil's federal biodiversity conservation agency (ICMBio), and the need for political measures to promote state leadership and support. Continuing to focus on the designation of more MPAs whilst not fully addressing these issues will achieve little beyond fulfilling, on paper, Brazil's international marine biodiversity commitments.

Historical Analysis Exposes Catastrophic Seagrass Loss for the United Kingdom.

The spatial extent of seagrass is poorly mapped, and knowledge of historical loss is limited. Here, we collated empirical and qualitative data using systematic review methods to provide unique analysis on seagrass occurrence and loss in the United Kingdom. We document 8,493 ha of recently mapped seagrass in the United Kingdom since 1998. This equates to an estimated 0.9 Mt of carbon, which, in the current carbon market represents about £22 million. Using simple models to estimate seagrass declines triangulated against habitat suitability models, we provide evidence of catastrophic seagrass loss; at least 44% of United Kingdom's seagrasses have been lost since 1936, 39% since the 1980's. However, losses over longer time spans may be as high as 92%. Based on these estimates, historical seagrass meadows could have stored 11.5 Mt of carbon and supported approximately 400 million fish. Our results demonstrate the vast scale of losses and highlight the opportunities to restore seagrass to support a range of ecosystems services.

Variability of UK seagrass sediment carbon: Implications for blue carbon estimates and marine conservation management.

Seagrass meadows provide a multitude of ecosystem services, including a capacity to sequester carbon dioxide (CO2) within their sediments. Seagrass research in the UK is lacking and there is no published data on sediment carbon (C) within UK seagrass meadows. We sampled 13 Zostera marina meadows along the southwest coast of the UK to assess the variability in their sedimentary organic carbon (OC) stocks. The study sites were considered representative of sub-tidal Z. marina meadows in the UK, spanning a gradient of sheltered to exposed sites, varying in formation, size and density, but found along the same latitudinal gradient. OC stocks (Cstocks) integrated across 100cm depth profiles were similar among all sites (98.01 ± 2.15 to 140.24 ± 10.27 Mg C ha-1), apart from at Drakes Island, which recorded an unusually high Cstock (380.07 ± 17.51 Mg C ha-1) compared to the rest of the region. The total standing stock of C in the top 100cm of the surveyed seagrass meadows was 66,337 t C, or the equivalent of 10,512 individual UK people's CO2 emissions per year. This figure is particularly significant relative to the seagrass area, which totalled 549.79 ha. Using estimates of seagrass cover throughout the UK and recent UK C trading values we approximate that the monetary value of the UK's seagrass standing C stock is between £2.6 million and £5.3 million. The C stock of the UK's seagrass meadows represent one of the largest documented C stocks within Europe and are, therefore, of important ecosystem service value. The research raises questions concerning the reliability of using global or regional data as a proxy for local seagrass C stock estimates and adds to a growing body of literature that is looking to understand the mechanisms of seagrass C storage. When taken with the fact that seagrass meadows are an important habitat for commercially important and endangered species in the UK, along with their declining health and cover, this research supports the need for more robust conservation strategies for UK seagrass habitats.

Fish, human health and marine ecosystem health: policies in collision.

BACKGROUND: Health recommendations advocating increased fish consumption need to be placed in the context of the potential collapse of global marine capture fisheries. METHODS: Literature overview. RESULTS: In economically developed countries, official healthy eating advice is to eat more fish, particularly that rich in omega-3 oils. In many less economically developed countries, fish is a key human health asset, contributing >20% of animal protein intake for 2.6 billion people. Marine ecologists predict on current trends that fish stocks are set to collapse in 40 years, and propose increased restrictions on fishing, including no-take zones, in order to restore marine ecosystem health. Production of fishmeal for aquaculture and other non-food uses (22 MT in 2003) appears to be unsustainable. Differences in fish consumption probably contribute to within-country and international health inequalities. Such inequalities are likely to increase if fish stocks continue to decline, while increasing demand for fish will accelerate declines in fish stocks and the health of marine ecosystems. CONCLUSIONS: Urgent national and international action is necessary to address the tensions arising from increasing human demand for fish and seafood, and rapidly declining marine ecosystem health.

Building partnership capacity for the collaborative management of marine protected areas in the UK: a preliminary analysis.

This paper reports the findings of a preliminary analysis of 15 case studies of inshore marine protected areas in the UK. It draws on the common-pool resource (CPR) literature and is premised on the thesis that building partnership capacity amongst relevant authorities and resource users provides a critical basis for overcoming collective action problems (CAPs), through the development of incentive structures and social capital, in order to achieve strategic objectives. Particular attention is paid to the influence of statutory marine biodiversity conservation obligations to the European Commission for marine special areas of conservation (MSACs), as these are an important external contextual factor. The risks of imposition and parochialism are outlined and the challenges of taking a balanced approach are discussed. The challenges posed by the attributes of the marine environment are considered, as are those posed by the policy framework for MSACs. The findings are discussed in relation to three questions: (i) which partnership models appear to have the potential to overcome the CAPs posed by inshore MSACs? (ii) what CAPs had to be addressed during the early phase of development of the MSAC co-management regimes? (iii) what are the likely future CAPs for the collaborative management of MSACs that each partnership will need to address? These preliminary findings will form the basis for future studies to analyse the outcomes of these 15 initiatives, in order to assess the strengths, in various contexts, of different approaches for building resilient and balanced, thereby effective, institutions for the co-management of MSACs in the UK.