Call for wildlife reserve to cover 30% of oceans

[IChing]

Source: The Guardian

Scientists have called for almost a third of the world's oceans to be turned into protected areas for marine wildlife - to maintain food supplies and stop damage to underwater habitats and wildlife.

More than 250 scientists from around Europe signed a declaration yesterday to coincide with World Oceans Day.

"We need to radically rethink our relationship with the sea," said Callum Roberts of the University of York, who is heading the initiative. "What that means is putting back refuges in the ocean for larger, more vulnerable wildlife. Placing areas off-limits to fishing and exploitation so we can rebuild those ocean food webs that are so important."

Less than 0.006% of the world's 360m square kilometres of sea is designated as protected. In Britain, only three square kilometres out of 760,000 square kilometres of sea is off-limits to any exploitation, including for oil and gas.

Read more: http://environment.guardian.co.uk/conservation/story/0,,2098973,00.html

[Demeter]

1. It Will Be a Cold Day in Alaska

where the permafrost is melting and drying up, before that happens.

[Odin2005]

2. K&R

[roguevalley]

3. we do this or we die. down with factory ships.

[sakabatou]

4. The US will probably not follow

If the republicans still hold power...

[StarryNite]

5. I hope you're wrong

but I fear you are correct.

[sakabatou]

8. :(

[Neoma]

6. K and R

[Barrett808]

7. k & r

[Phredicles]

9. It's a nice idea, and we can hope it pans out;

but I agree chances aren't good if the Rethugs are left with a say in the matter.

[jeff30997]

10. 30% of oceans ?!?

BWAHAHA! Not so long ago the Ocean were free of us

at 90%! Dammit!

[dEMOK]

11. pardon the pun but...

...Great Catch!

Our seas have long been thought of as mysterious & inexhaustible systems of food production.

There are no more giant/old grouper & giant/old sea bass caught anywhere in the world

Our planet's seas need to be at least as well protected as the small percentage of our remaining old growth forests.

It's all the same. The environmental rapists (global businesses) don't care about any of it -- so they plunder all elements equally.

[MasonJar]

12. Bush and the Pugs are the big stumbling block in forward thinking on this

issue. They are useless! Worse than useless, they are impeding progress. EU is ready to act and in fact they already are. How did we get this sociopathic, narcissistic, dry drunk "moran" at such a crucial time in the earth's history?

[ozone_man]

13. We have to do it.

As a species, we are more dependent on the rest of the biosphere than we know. Not only is it the right thing to do to save marine life, it may very well save us from extinction too. I wish we could repeat that 30% on land too. Save as much as we can anyway in connected ecosystems.

[Coexist]

14. knr

nothing else to say.