BirdLife International proposes protected status for area of the Atlantic identified as vital for marine biodiversity. BirdLife International has presented a proposal to create a new Marine Protected Area (MPA) under OSPAR, the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic. If accepted by OSPAR, the MPA will be the first of its kind to be identified using seabird data as the principle data source, and will fill an important gap in the global network of protected areas.

BirdLife International worked in collaboration with marine scientists around the Atlantic, with additional guidance from German BirdLife Partner NABU (Nature And Biodiversity Conservation Union), to identify the proposed MPA, named Evlanov Seamount and Basin High Seas. If accepted, this site, which falls outside the jurisdiction of any country, will offer protection to one the most important sites for seabirds in the high seas of the North-East Atlantic.

OSPAR is the mechanism by which 15 governments and the European Union cooperate to protect the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic. The 15 governments are: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom.

The aim of the Evlanov Seamount and Basin High Seas MPA is to protect an area of the North Atlantic that is not only vital for many seabird species, but also for other marine megafauna such as tunas, sharks, whales and sea-turtles, by maintaining the natural richness and resilience of this pelagic ecosystem. Click here to read more.