Dos Mares project seeks to establish new Baja California Sur marine reserve

A conjugation of biology groups and section fishermen is continuing its propulsion for the instauration of a caller Marine Protected Area disconnected the seashore of Baja California Sur (BCS), aiming to conserve marine ecosystems and enactment sustainable sportfishing practices.

The projected Dos Mares (Two Seas) Biosphere Reserve would screen astir 192,000 quadrate kilometers, stretching from the BCS coastline to 50 miles offshore successful some the Pacific Ocean and the confederate Gulf of California (aka, the Sea of Cortés).

The projected reserves would make a portion astir the Baja California Peninsula wherever lone small-scale accepted coastal fishing, athletics sportfishing and different h2o tourism activities would beryllium allowed (shown successful greenish connected the map). The brownish country indicates wherever each activities would beryllium prohibited. (Depesca)

Proponents accidental the reserve would assistance Mexico conscionable planetary conservation commitments portion protecting section livelihoods.

“This is not our project. It is simply a task of the people,” Gabriela Gómez, manager of the Fund for the Conservation of the Seas (FOMARES), said this week successful the quality mag Expansíón ESG.

The program was developed by DEPESCA, a 2-year-old marine relation successful BCS whose sanction is apt derived from desarrollo pesquero (fisheries development).

“In our state, what we person called a ‘Coastal Wave’ has formed,” DEPESCA writes connected its website. “This is an unprecedented event, since for the archetypal clip artisanal and athletics fishermen, aquaculturists and nautical tourism work providers are joining forces to support our marine heritage.”

Dos Mares supporters reason the reserve would payment the portion economically. According to the La Paz paper El Sudcaliforniano, a survey by researchers astatine the Colegio de México projected the MPA could pb to a 7.68% summation successful existent income for the section economy, driven by accrued tourism and improved sportfishing productivity.

However, the connection faces absorption from immoderate coastal sportfishing communities. Tomás Camacho, president of the Puerto Chale Fishing Cooperative Society, expressed interest that the reserve could enforce further restrictions connected accepted sportfishing practices.

The inaugural to make the reserve is simply a associated effort by biology groups and accepted coastal fishermen successful the state, whose standard of sportfishing is considered sustainable. But not each fishermen successful the portion enactment the initiative. (Government of BCS)

“They archer america the aforesaid happening arsenic always, that shrimp boats volition not beryllium capable to participate and that the Don Diego Mine volition beryllium off-limits too,” Camacho told El Sudcaliforniano.

Don Diego is simply a projected underwater, phosphate dredging task about 40 kilometers disconnected the BCS seashore that was denied biology permits twice, successful 2016 and 2018, by Mexico’s biology agency, SEMARNAT. Five months ago, the institution down the project, Odyssey Marine Exploration, won a judgement of much than US $37.1 cardinal against the Mexico authorities from the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, though Mexican authorities support their decisions to retreat the permits based connected biology concerns and vowed to combat the ruling.

Proponents of Dos Mares accidental it would assistance sphere biodiversity and enactment migratory taxon by creating corridors connecting existing protected areas.

Launched successful mid-2023, the task is inactive successful the connection and advocacy stage. Current efforts are focused connected gaining enactment from section communities, authorities officials and different stakeholders.

The projected reserve would perchance summation Mexico’s marine protected areas from 5% to 12% of the nation’s Exclusive Economic Zone, a 3.27-million-kilometer maritime country (ranked the thirteenth largest successful the world) that contributes importantly to the country’s territory and resources.

Advocates are hoping that President Claudia Sheinbaum’s inheritance successful sustainable improvement whitethorn positively power the project’s prospects.

With reports from Expansíon ESG and El Sudcaliforniano