sala y gomez island
Working Toward Marine Protection for Rapa Nui
Oceana and National Geographic are currently on a scientific expedition to Sala y Gomez Island and Easter Island (also known as Rapa Nui). Author Alex Mu帽oz is the Executive Director of Oceana Chile. This blog dispatch was originally posted at National Geographic.
Today we had an extraordinary meeting with representatives of the Rapa Nui chamber of tourism and other members of the local community. They told us of their project to create a marine preserve right off Hanga Roa Bay, which they said is a critical initiative for them. They know that Hanga Roa concentrates incredible marine life. Also, it's one of the most beautiful spots here for divers, as indeed for any island visitors, which makes it both ecologically and economically important.
The Rapa Nui community formally presented this proposal to the Chilean government a few years ago, but unfortunately it was turned down. Now they want to explore collaboration with us and see if we would be interested in supporting them in an effort to present this project again.
Setting Sail for Sala y G贸mez and Easter Island
On Sunday Oceana and the National Geographic Society, in an unprecedented collaboration with the Chilean Navy, launched a scientific expedition to the waters that surround Chile鈥檚 Sala y G贸mez Island and Easter Island.
The expedition comes after a preliminary trip by Oceana and National Geographic last March. The results of that initial journey, as you may recall, led the Chilean government to create a no-take marine reserve, Motu Motiro Hiva Marine Park, around Sala y G贸mez. At 150,000 square kilometers, the park increases Chile鈥檚 protected marine areas from 0.03% to 4.4%.
The scientific results of this expedition will be crucial in monitoring the new marine park, and the scientists will assess the health of the waters surrounding Easter Island to determine the need for new conservation measures. Easter Island鈥檚 EEZ includes currently unprotect underwater mountains.
Victory! Chile Creates Marine Reserve Around Sala y G贸mez
We were hoping this day would come, and today, it did!
In a huge victory this morning for Chile鈥檚 marine health and our Chilean colleagues, Chile鈥檚 President Sebasti谩n Pi帽era announced the creation of Sala y G贸mez Marine Park, a no-take marine reserve of 150,000 square kilometers around Sala y G贸mez island.
Sala y G贸mez is an uninhabited island that鈥檚 part of a biodiverse chain of seamounts that are vulnerable to fishing activity. Dr. Enric Sala, marine ecologist and National Geographic Ocean Fellow, called Sala y G贸mez 鈥渙ne of the last undisturbed and relatively pristine places left in the ocean.鈥
Last March, Oceana, National Geographic and the Waitt Foundation conducted a preliminary scientific expedition to the island and found abundant populations of vulnerable species such as sharks and lobsters, much larger than in the depleted ecosystem in nearby Easter Island, which is not protected from fishing. In addition, the scientists found unexpectedly high biodiversity in deeper waters.
Victory! Chilean Senate Recommends MPA Around Sala y G贸mez Island
Big news for a pristine patch of ocean off the coast of Chile: Last week the Chilean Senate鈥檚 Fisheries Committee unanimously agreed that the Chilean government should establish a 200 nautical mile marine protected area around the Island of Sala y G贸mez, near Easter Island.
Oceana and National Geographic have been promoting the protection of this area, which still remains virtually unexplored, and which may well be one of the last pristine vulnerable marine ecosystems in the Pacific.
