Portugal Creates 38,000 Square-Mile Underwater Sanctuary

Photo: Campagne CYAGOR 2 – Vues du manteau et de la croûte océanique via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)

Protecting our oceans is now more important than ever. And while there are actions that organizations and the general public can do to help, some of the most direct and powerful efforts are the ones that come from governments. That’s why Portugal’s recent creation of a 38,000-square-mile sanctuary is so important and impactful.

The new marine protected area (MPA) covers Gorringe Ridge, home to 850 marine species. The Gorringe Ridge is the tallest seamount—a large submarine volcanic mountain—in Western Europe, and is known for its biodiversity. Among its most famous inhabitants are “soft corals,” or gorgonians, and deep-sea sponges, which call the 1,100 reefs found throughout the ridge home. It is located about 155 miles off the coast of Cape St. Vincent, the southwesternmost point of Portugal and mainland Europe.

With the creation of this MPA, Portugal has raised its percentage of total protected territorial waters—areas within a nation’s territorial waters that are designated as safeguarded marine ecosystems—from 19% to 27%.

“In terms of marine protection we are the most advanced country in the world with our characteristics combining continental and insular territory,” says Portugal's environment minister Maria da Graca Carvalho. “Certainly the leader in Europe.”

The creation of this area was announced by Carvalho at the third U.N. Oceans Conference in Nice, France. At this summit, nations came together to explore and discuss actions to protect ocean life within and beyond each country's jurisdiction. This is part of the endeavor to get more countries to ratify the 2023 High Seas Treaty, which aims to protect marine biological diversity in international waters. With 51 nations on board, it needs nine more countries to join for it to become law.

“A large-scale MPA like this, if fully protected, will functionally connect seamounts, abyssal plains, and open ocean, and create a safe haven to highly mobile and migratory species, and deep sea habitats,” says Emanuel Gonçalves, chief scientist at Oceano Azul Foundation. He was the one who actually suggested the massive size of the newly protected area to the government after helping them map it all. “It will provide a fertile nursery and feeding ground for turtles, sharks, marine mammals, sea birds, and tunas, expand or restore kelp and coral forests, and create a sanctuary for the unique breeding aggregation of torpedo rays.”

This is also the result of the efforts of international advocacy organization Oceana, which has been pushing for the protection of the Gorringe Ridge since they explored it 2012. “The seamounts are visited by great pelagic species, such as whales, dolphins, and swordfish,” Oceana said back then. “The peaks are covered by algae forests, particularly kelp. Large schools of amberjack, horse mackerel, and barracuda concentrate above the highest peaks, and detritic bottoms, covered in the remains of coral, bryozoans, and mollusks, abound in deeper areas, are inhabited by dragon fish, fan corals, pink frogmouths, and bird’s nest sponges.”

The final approval for the marine protected area is still pending, as are the fine details, such as whether it will be a fully protected area or if some fishing will be allowed. For what it’s worth, its creation is a landmark in conservation in one of the most richly diverse regions in the ocean, and will hopefully inspire other nations to follow suit.