The oceans around Antarctica are the only oceans on this earth still relatively untouched by human activity. They are home to almost 10,000 unique and diverse species, many of which cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. But today the Antarctic waters are under threat. You can help us to ensure Antarctic Ocean habitats and wildlife are protected from human interference.
The Antarctic oceans are an essential ecosystem for the survival of Adelié and emperor penguins, Antarctic petrels and minke whales, Ross Sea killer whales, colossal squid and Weddell seals, to name a few.
Antarctica’s Southern Ocean is a critical laboratory for scientists studying the effects of climate change as the global impacts increase and threaten the region.
The AOA has identified over 40% of the Southern Ocean that warrants protection and the Alliance has called for the establishment of the world’s largest network of Marine Protected Areas and no-take marine reserves to protect 19 key Antarctic marine habitats.
While other marine ecosystems are threatened and devastated by development, pollution, mining, oil drilling and overfishing, Antarctica’s Ross Sea remains one of the most intact on the planet – the ocean equivalent of Africa’s Great Plains.
This AOA report outlines a vision for marine protection in the East Antarctic, a remote area that is home to a significant proportion of the Southern Ocean’s penguins, seals and whales. The area’s coastal region also contains large seafloor and oceanographic features found nowhere else on the planet.
It shows the key ocean areas the Antarctic Ocean Alliance seeks to protect.
The Antarctic Ocean Alliance (AOA) is a coalition of leading environmental and conservation organisations working to establish a network of designated, no-take marine reserves and marine protected areas in the Antarctic. This will be the most comprehensive regime of its kind on the planet. With such a network in place, key Antarctic ocean habitats and wildlife would be protected from human interference.
These supporters are just some of many who are working to establish a network of designated, no-take marine reserves and marine protected areas in Antarctica’s Southern Ocean.
