scholarly journals Climate Mitigation through Biological Conservation: Extensive and Valuable Blue Carbon Natural Capital in Tristan da Cunha’s Giant Marine Protected Zone

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1339
Author(s):  
David K. A. Barnes ◽  
James B. Bell ◽  
Amelia E. Bridges ◽  
Louise Ireland ◽  
Kerry L. Howell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Shadow Price ◽  
Standing Stock ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
Skeletal Tissue ◽  
Tristan Da Cunha ◽  
Seabed Mapping

Carbon-rich habitats can provide powerful climate mitigation if meaningful protection is put in place. We attempted to quantify this around the Tristan da Cunha archipelago Marine Protected Area. Its shallows (<1000 m depth) are varied and productive. The 5.4 km2 of kelp stores ~60 tonnes of carbon (tC) and may export ~240 tC into surrounding depths. In deep-waters we analysed seabed data collected from three research cruises, including seabed mapping, camera imagery, seabed oceanography and benthic samples from mini-Agassiz trawl. Rich biological assemblages on seamounts significantly differed to the islands and carbon storage had complex drivers. We estimate ~2.3 million tC are stored in benthic biodiversity of waters <1000 m, which includes >0.22 million tC that can be sequestered (the proportion of the carbon captured that is expected to become buried in sediment or locked away in skeletal tissue for at least 100 years). Much of this carbon is captured by cold-water coral reefs as a mixture of inorganic (largely calcium carbonate) and organic compounds. As part of its 2020 Marine Protection Strategy, these deep-water reef systems are now protected by a full bottom-trawling ban throughout Tristan da Cunha and representative no take areas on its seamounts. This small United Kingdom Overseas Territory’s reef systems represent approximately 0.8 Mt CO2 equivalent sequestered carbon; valued at >£24 Million GBP (at the UN shadow price of carbon). Annual productivity of this protected standing stock generates an estimated £3 million worth of sequestered carbon a year, making it an unrecognized and potentially major component of the economy of small island nations like Tristan da Cunha. Conservation of near intact habitats are expected to provide strong climate and biodiversity returns, which are exemplified by this MPA.

scholarly journals Using autonomous video to estimate the bottom-contact area of longline trap gear and presence–absence of sensitive benthic habitat

2018 ◽  
Vol 75 (5) ◽  
pp. 797-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beau Doherty ◽  
Samuel D.N. Johnson ◽  
Sean P. Cox
Keyword(s):  
Contact Area ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Sensor Data ◽  
Benthic Habitat ◽  
Commercial Fishing ◽  
Depth Sensor ◽  
Quality Of Data ◽  
Bottom Contact

Bottom longline hook and trap fishing gear can potentially damage sensitive benthic areas (SBAs) in the ocean; however, the large-scale risks to these habitats are poorly understood because of the difficulties in mapping SBAs and in measuring the bottom-contact area of longline gear. In this paper, we describe a collaborative academic–industry–government approach to obtaining direct presence–absence data for SBAs and to measuring gear interactions with seafloor habitats via a novel deepwater trap camera and motion-sensing systems on commercial longline traps for sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) within SGaan Kinghlas – Bowie Seamount Marine Protected Area. We obtained direct presence–absence observations of cold-water corals (Alcyonacea, Antipatharia, Pennatulacea, Stylasteridae) and sponges (Hexactinellida, Demospongiae) at 92 locations over three commercial fishing trips. Video, accelerometer, and depth sensor data were used to estimate a mean bottom footprint of 53 m2 for a standard sablefish trap, which translates to 3200 m2 (95% CI = 2400–3900 m2) for a 60-trap commercial sablefish longline set. Our successful collaboration demonstrates how research partnerships with commercial fisheries have potential for massive improvements in the quantity and quality of data needed for conducting SBA risk assessments over large spatial and temporal scales.

scholarly journals Seabed mapping for selecting cold-water coral protection areas on Hatton Bank, Northeast Atlantic

2009 ◽  
Vol 66 (9) ◽  
pp. 2013-2025 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Durán Muñoz ◽  
M. Sayago-Gil ◽  
J. Cristobo ◽  
S. Parra ◽  
A. Serrano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Deep Sea ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
Western Slope ◽  
Northeast Atlantic ◽  
Fisheries Science ◽  
Seabed Mapping ◽  
Del Rio ◽  
Water Coral

Abstract Durán Muñoz, P., Sayago-Gil, M., Cristobo, J., Parra, S., Serrano, A., Díaz del Rio, V., Patrocinio, T., Sacau, M., Murillo, F. J., Palomino, D., and Fernández-Salas, L. M. 2009. Seabed mapping for selecting cold-water coral protection areas on Hatton Bank, Northeast Atlantic. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 2013–2025. Research into vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) on the high seas and the impacts of bottom fishing and ad hoc management measures are high priority today thanks to UN General Assembly Resolution 61/105. An interdisciplinary methodology (specifically designed for selecting cold-water coral protection areas) and a case study focused on the Hatton Bank (NE Atlantic) are presented. This interdisciplinary approach, developed under the ECOVUL/ARPA project, was based on conventional fisheries science, geomorphology, benthic ecology, and sedimentology. It contributes to defining practical criteria for identifying VMEs, to improving knowledge of their distribution off Europe's continental shelf, and to providing advice on negative fishing impacts and habitat protection. The approach was used to identify the bottom-trawl deep-sea fishery footprint on the western slope of Hatton Bank, to map the main fishing grounds and related deep-sea habitats (1000–1500 m deep), and to study the interactions between fisheries and cold-water corals. The results lead to a proposal to close the outcrop area (4645 km2) located on the western slope of Hatton Bank as a conservation measure for cold-water corals.

Towards a Sedimentary Carbon Stock Estimate for Scotland's EEZ: A Tiered Mapping Approach.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Austin ◽  
Craig Smeaton
Keyword(s):  
Earth Science ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
Sediment Type ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Seabed Mapping ◽  
Shelf Seas ◽  
Shelf Sediments ◽  
Sedimentary Carbon

&lt;p&gt;Coastal and shelf sediments trap and bury significant quantities carbon (Berner, 1982) and provide an conditions allowing for the long-term storage of carbon. Through burying this carbon these sediments potentially provide a climate mitigation services. Currently our understanding of the spatial distribution of C within the surficial sediments of &amp;#160;coastal and shelf seas is limited. Using Scotland&amp;#8217;s EEZ as a natural laboratory in conjunction with the tiered seabed mapping methodology developed by Smeaton and Austin (2019), we show that coastal and shelf sediments are highly heterogenous in both sediment type and C content. The tiered approach utilised in this study is ideally suited to global applications where data availability may differ significantly. Improved spatial mapping of seabed C will provide policy makers with a new tool for the targeted management and protection of these globally important C stores.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Berner, R. A., 1982, Burial of organic carbon and pyrite sulfur in the modern ocean: Its geochemical and environmental significance.Am. J. Sci.282,451&amp;#8211;473 (1982)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Smeaton, C. and Austin, W.E.N., 2019. Where&amp;#8217;s the Carbon: Exploring the Spatial Heterogeneity of Sedimentary Carbon in Mid-Latitude Fjords. Frontiers in Earth Science, 7, p.269.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals A system for automated analysis of subsea movies using citizen science and machine learning

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Anton ◽  
Jannes Germishuys ◽  
Matthias Obst
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Image Data ◽  
Application Programming Interface ◽  
Automated Analysis ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
High Performance Computers

This paper describes a data system to analyse large amounts of subsea movie data for marine ecological research. The system consists of three distinct modules for data management and archiving, citizen science, and machine learning in a high performance computation environment. It allows scientists to upload underwater footage to a customised citizen science website hosted by Zooniverse, where volunteers from the public classify the footage. Classifications with high agreement among citizen scientists are then used to train machine learning algorithms. An application programming interface allows researchers to test the algorithms and track biological objects in new footage. We tested our system using recordings from remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) in a Marine Protected Area, the Kosterhavet National Park in Sweden. Results indicate a strong decline of cold-water corals in the park over a period of 15 years, showing that our system allows to effectively extract valuable occurrence and abundance data for key ecological species from underwater footage. We argue that the combination of citizen science tools, machine learning, and high performance computers are key to successfully analyse large amounts of image data in the future, suggesting that these services should be consolidated and interlinked by national and international research infrastructures. Novel information system to analyse marine underwater footage.

scholarly journals Doorway to Europe: migration and its impact on island tourism

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl Agius
Keyword(s):  
Media Coverage ◽  
Marine Protected Area ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
The Other ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Central Mediterranean ◽  
Tourism Sector ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Representative Image

Lampedusa is today best known in relation to migration. The island has confronted one migration crisis after the other for the past three decades, resulting in extensive media coverage. Whereas Lampedusa, a small island in the central Mediterranean region, has an economy mainly based on tourism, its name remains associated with migration, which is believed to negatively impact the island’s image and the performance of its tourism sector. On the other hand, migration has to some extent, put Lampedusa on the map, helping the island gain popularity. The island’s existing tourism model is based on sun, sand, and sea (3S) and is made attractive by its beaches, one of which has ranked as the best beach in the world, as well as by marketing efforts presenting Lampedusa as 'the Caribbean island of the Mediterranean'. However, migration and 3S are camouflaging other resources that are key to the island’s image. Lampedusa has a terrestrial nature reserve as well as a marine protected area that is home to several charismatic marine species, making it an ideal ecotourism destination. These resources can be used not only to depict a more representative image of the island but also to develop a sustainable tourism model that is suitable to a small island.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document