Oceana, the international marine conservation organisation, presented a proposal to protect 15% of the marine areas in the Spanish waters of the Canary Islands. The areas pointed out by Oceana in its report, as part of the project developed with support from the Fundación Biodiversidad, the Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs, at up to roughly 74,000 km2. This addition, along with the archipelago’s existing network of marine areas, would mean protecting an area that is 100 times larger than the current 0.15%  and comply with the measures established by international legislation.

The initiative was presented at the Fundación Biodiversidad headquarters. “Oceana’s proposal addresses EU requirements,” points out Ricardo Aguilar, director of research for Oceana Europe. “After evaluating the Natura 2000 Network in the Canary Islands, the European Commission determined that the current network of marine areas does not guarantee protection for the habitats and species present in the Canary Islands. Because the Habitats Directive calls for their protection, the network should be expanded.”

More info: http://eu.oceana.org