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Marine Initiatives
The Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) is one of the largest marine protected areas in the world. Its unique volcanic geology, formed by the meeting of the Nazca, Pacific, and Cocos tectonic plates, provides a wide range of marine habitats. In the archipelago’s outer waters, the ocean floor falls to 4000 m. Elsewhere, dramatic cliff faces, mangroves, lagoons, sandy beaches, and salt panne habitats can be found.
Within the 50,000 sq miles of the GMR, deep, cold, oxygen-rich ocean currents from the Antarctic meet warm equatorial currents to create a huge explosion of chlorophyll that provides the base for an amazingly diverse food chain. In geographic isolation, seemingly contrary life forms – coral reefs and penguins, fur seals, and hammerhead sharks – are found together. Levels of endemism are very high compared to other marine ecosystems – around 25%.
Marine conservation challenges
The GMR provides an unparalleled opportunity to understand and study marine ecosystems and global climate change. However, the Reserve is threatened by human activity both within and beyond its boundaries and by our limited understanding of this complex and delicate ecosystem. The potentially most serious threats include:
- Economic opportunities in tourism and fishing are driving increased human migration to the islands. Both industries depend on the health of the marine ecosystem and yet their unmanaged growth threatens the future of Galapagos’ waters.
- Virtually all of the 120,000 visitors who come to Galapagos each year explore the islands by boat. Most supplies for tourists and residents come from the continent by sea. Ship traffic poses the threat of environmental disaster (as was clearly seen in the 2001 grounding of the Jessica tanker while delivering fuel for a cruise ship) and the introduction of invasive species to the archipelago.
- Galapagos fisheries have traditionally targeted lobster and fish for local consumption. Then in the 1990s new and lucrative markets for sea cucumbers and illegal shark fins fueled explosive growth in fishing. Since then, lobster and sea cucumber fisheries have been reduced to below economically viable levels and will take a long time to recover, even under the most favorable conditions.
- A number of species in the GMR, such as whales, sharks, and pelagic fish species, pass in and out of the reserve. Populations in Galapagos waters can be severely affected by activities occurring outside of the GMR, such as industrial longlining.
- The decision taken in 2007 by the Ecuadorian government to allow the sale of shark fins from by-catch (targeted shark fishing remains prohibited) requires additional infrastructure and human resources to make certain that this move does not result in an increase in illegal shark fishing in the waters of Galapagos.
- There is ongoing pressure to expand the fishing sector and to regulate new activities in the GMR, such as sport fishing, without fully understanding their impacts in the reserve or on land.
Climate Change and the coastal ecosystems in Galapagos
Periodic El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) warming episodes have always occurred in Galapagos. However, global climate change will likely result in increased sea levels, sea temperatures, rainfall, and acidification of the oceans —all of which will exacerbate the impacts of ENSO events.
How will Galapagos ecosystems respond? There may be some species and habitats that are not able to survive in the long term. Corals, Galapagos penguins, green sea turtles, and marine iguanas are considered among the most vulnerable to the effects of rising sea level and temperature.
At the same time, Galapagos is a potentially important refuge for marine biodiversity in the face of global warming affecting the Eastern Tropical Pacific. Strong ENSO events in Galapagos breed climate change resilience into organisms that survive those events, while upwelling in western Galapagos creates cold refuge pockets in which species that cannot survive elsewhere might persist.
Over time, this new monitoring system will allow us to learn more about the interdependence among the human population, climate change, and the natural resources in coastal areas of the archipelago. These lessons could make Galapagos a “barometer” for climate change scenarios elsewhere.
Zoning to protect coastal species
A cornerstone for conservation efforts in the Reserve is a zoning system that allows certain activities in specific areas. For example, much of the deep waters of the reserve are designated as Multiple Use Zones, where artisanal fishing, tourism, science, and education activities are allowed, provided they are consistent with the Park’s Marine Reserve Management Plan. The areas surrounding the five harbors in Galapagos are managed for human activity as well as broad conservation objectives. Coastal areas and shallow waters are generally designated as Limited Use Zones, which include control areas (no tourism or fishing is allowed), conservation and non-extraction areas (science and tourism are allowed), and areas where artisanal fishing, tourism, science, and education all take place.
Preliminary studies show that zoning in the GMR is helping to restore greater abundance and diversity of species, including top-level predators. However, effective management and adjustment of the zones requires comprehensive, integrated, up-to-date data to allow rapid assessment of conditions and the development of risk assessment models to anticipate the impact of current or proposed human activities or ecological disturbances.
Marine conservation priorities
Effective management of the GMR will require:
- Ongoing population studies of target species of key fisheries and threatened marine mammals, sharks and seabirds
- On-going evaluation and adjustment of zoning schemes in the GMR
- Impact analysis of current and proposed activities in the GMR
- Studies on climate change, especially as related to El Niño
- Education programs focused on local fishermen, tourists, the tourism industry, and local youth
- Expanded use of a Geographic Information System (GIS) to manage multiple layers of socioeconomic and scientific information related to GMR management
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