Pakistan’s participation in the conference signifies that protection of environment and combating climate change is one of the key priorities of the current government.
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President Barack Obama will address the conference on Thursday, where he will unveil the designation of a USA marine monument off the coast of New England, the White House said. The conferences focus on marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, and climate-related impacts on the ocean.
The secretary of state said that we’re not going to be the prisoners of history, we’re going to change the course of history in terms of protecting the world’s oceans. Both sides discussed bilateral cooperation in the area of climate change.
The new national monument created Thursday, dubbed the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, is almost 5,000 square miles, and protects unique ecosystems that host important coral and whales, among other vulnerable or endangered species.
In August 2016, Obama had chose to expand the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii by 1.1 million square km, creating the world’s largest marine protected area. “Not the other way around”, the president said while adding he remains optimistic that those in the room could rise to the challenge because “these are problems we can solve”.
Deep sea coral, endangered whales, and sea turtles are just a few of the things the White House said will now be protected under the order signed by the President.
Mr Obama will formally announced the project at the Our Ocean conference, a global initiative started by his administration, which has given a higher profile to marine conservation.
The declaration nonetheless means most commercial fishing will soon be banned from the waters within the monument.
Vanasse says the move will seriously hurt the fishing industry: “We anticipate the offshore lobster industry will be affected to the tune of about $10 million per year”.
By permanently protecting these resources and reducing other threats to their respective ecosystems, these actions will also improve ocean resilience in the face of climate change, and help to sustain the ocean ecosystems and fishing economies in these regions for the long run.
Obama said the world was asking too much of its oceans.
TOVIA SMITH, BYLINE: It’s been called an underwater Yellowstone and a deep sea Serengeti.
“We will build on those achievements by announcing over 120 significant ocean conservation projects, including nearly $2 billion in new pledges and commitments to protect more than two million square kilometers in new or expanded marine protected areas”.
“But they have also institutionalized it, the European Union and Malta will host it next time”.
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SMITH: Sewell says the underwater wilderness called the New-England Coral Canyons and Seamounts is unexploited by commercial fishing, mining or drilling.
