12/7/2023 0 Comments Diving ascension islandThe now-protected water around the southern half of Ascension is home to many species, including tuna, marlin and sharks, as well as the endangered green sea turtle, which nests on the beaches. As 94 percent of the UK's biodiversity lives in the overseas territories, preserving those waters has become a priority for the country. These marine reserves are sections of the ocean that prohibit commercial fishing, to support and replenish the sea life in the area. This follows the UK's creation of one of the world's largest contiguous marine reserves, at 322,138 square miles (about 3.5 times the size of the UK), around the Pacific's Pitcairn Islands in 2015. Before the reserve can officially be established, Ascension will zone off over half of its surrounding waters to prohibit fishing in attempts to further assess the suitability of the location and potential benefits to the communities. The UK announced the establishment of the 90,460-square-mile reserve in January, just about 3,500 square miles smaller than the UK itself. The latest location to begin protecting its waters is Ascension Island, located in the Atlantic Ocean between South America and Africa. In order to protect and foster the ocean’s wildlife, the United Kingdom is pursuing total protection of the 2.6 million square miles of waters around its 14 overseas territories, an area more than double the size of India. Throughout the world’s tremendous expanse of ocean, only 1 percent is protected as marine reserves.
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