Russia and China have again blocked plans supported by the European Union, the United States and 23 other nations to protect three vast stretches of ocean around Antarctica from most fishing.

The 41st annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) closed without making significant progress toward the establishment of new marine protected areas and fishery regulations.

However, conservationists said there were some positives from a two-week international meeting on the future of Antarctica’s pristine waters that concluded on 4 November 2022.  Many nations have become frustrated at the ability of Russia — and, to a lesser extent, China — to effectively veto proposals, as the rules of the group require it reach consensus before taking action.

Some positives

The Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy Project said it was pleased the group had managed to agree on some measures around krill fishing. The small, shrimp-like creatures are eaten by seabirds, penguins, seals and whales.

“While the krill conservation measure is a good first step, new evidence underscores that the best precautionary approach to Southern Ocean conservation couples ecosystem-based fishery management and marine protected areas,” said Andrea Kavanagh, director of the Project’s Antarctic and Southern Ocean work.

Calls for immediate protection of the Southern Ocean

Before the meeting there were calls for immediate protection of the area. A new paper published in the journal Science called on global leaders to protect Antarctica’s Southern Ocean and preserve its global significance.

Finding consensus among the CCAMLR group has always been hard but has been exacerbated by Russia’s war in Ukraine — which is also a member of the group.

At the close of the meeting it was agreed to hold a Special Meeting of the Commission in order to progress MPA implementation, to be hosted by Chile in the first half of 2023.

Further information and full extracts from news reports can be found at ABCnews, PRnewswire, The Ferret, Mongabay and Greenpeace.

The summary of the meeting by CCAMLR can be found here.