Portugal announced on 11 June the creation of a new protected marine area (MPA) around the Gorringe Ridge in the Atlantic Ocean, which includes Western Europe’s tallest seamount.
Portugal’s Environment Minister, Maria da Graça Carvalho, made the announcement as countries gathered in Nice, France for the third UN Oceans Conference (9-13 June) with the aim to accelerate action to preserve marine environments.
The new Gorringe MPA, located about 200 km (124 miles) off Portugal’s southern coast, along with two smaller areas to be designated, will increase the country’s protected marine territory from 19% to at least 27%.
Globally, only 8.4% of marine and coastal areas are currently protected, far below the 30% target set for 2030. Carvalho noted that the approval of the new MPA is expected within the next few months, with details on total area and the extent of fully protected zones, where fishing would be prohibited, still to be finalized.
Furthermore, this initiative builds on Portugal’s conservation efforts last year when it established the largest protected area in the North Atlantic around the Azores archipelago, covering nearly 300,000 square kilometers, half of which is fully protected.
Emanuel Gonçalves, chief scientist at the Oceano Azul Foundation, which collaborated with the Portuguese navy to map the area, said the recommended MPA would cover approximately 100,000 square kilometers (38,610 square miles) and explained that a fully protected large-scale MPA like this would connect seamounts, abyssal plains and open ocean, creating a safe haven for highly mobile and migratory species as well as deep-sea habitats.
