Effective Area-based Conservation Measures Research Articles

Assessing the effectiveness of potential protected areas and OECMs in conserving biodiversity against subsurface resource extraction impacts

The direct and indirect impacts of resource extraction activities are an increasingly important planning and management challenge for organizations responsible for protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs). The development of subsurface resources in protected areas or OECMs can have significant implications for the ways in which such areas are established and their overall effectiveness in conserving biodiversity. In this article, we introduce a decision-support tool, developed through expert consensus and real-world application, that can be used to assist organizations to evaluate the effectiveness of conservation mechanisms (laws, regulations, and associated policies) and other management tools from potential subsurface resource extraction activities. The tool provides a novel and comprehensive method to determine whether a potential protected area or OECM is effective in managing all subsurface activities that may have an impact on biodiversity. While developed in Canada, the tool has universal applicability for conservation managers globally working to achieve standards of protection for biodiversity. We conclude by discussing the ways in which Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) can consider resource extraction rights and impacts in national efforts to effectively achieve the goals and targets of the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

A Conceptual Framework for Biodiversity Monitoring Programs in Conservation Areas

Maintaining and improving the state of biodiversity is a primary factor guiding management activities in conservation areas, including protected areas (PAs) and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs). Due to the complex nature of conservation programs, a common management approach cannot be prescribed. Robust monitoring programs supporting management activities are required to evaluate the state of species and habitats. However, limited resources, poor data management practices, and competing requirements of stakeholder groups increase the challenges that must be addressed through realization of monitoring programs. We propose a framework of seven basic questions to guide conservation area managers to implement effective biodiversity monitoring techniques. The result is identification of indicators, site characteristics, and resources to promote the development of a biodiversity monitoring program. We call for adoption of a strategic guideline providing this framework to harmonize decision making processes across national and international networks. Implementation of this robust framework will support comparative monitoring data, contributing to systematic approaches for adaptive management in PAs and OECMs and improving the body of knowledge surrounding global biodiversity.

Saving two fish with one wreck: Maximizing synergies in marine biodiversity conservation and underwater cultural heritage protection

The oceans harbor critical areas of marine biodiversity and underwater cultural heritage, both of which require active protection and preservation for the future. Here, we consider how the presence of underwater cultural heritage can be used to bolster the conservation of marine biodiversity, and vice versa. We perform spatial analyses showcasing where sea-space of high cultural and natural value overlaps. Subsequently, we identify three potential synergies that could lead to better outcomes for underwater cultural heritage and marine biodiversity: (1) overlap in the definitions of world heritage, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs); (2) synergies between shipwreck management and fisheries management; and (3) synergies around sustainable tourism and livelihoods. We then contextualize our argument using a case study in Indonesia involving the governance of the HMAS Perth (I) wreck and its Maritime Conservation Zone. Our discussions are relevant to marine managers and policy makers, as well as practitioners involved in economic activities that benefit from, and can impact, marine biodiversity and underwater cultural heritage, such as fishing and dive tourism.

Customary ecological conservation of Mwanda-Marungu Pastoral Commons in Taita Hills, south-west Kenya

Rural commons in East-Africa have historically played key socio-economic and environmental sustainability. Despite growing interest in this arena, there are still surprisingly few studies that examine rural customary management of pastoral communities in East Africa. This is striking given that this region is an exemplary area for pastoralism and thus ideal for communal systems such as commons. Deficient studies and political support in this area could be linked to widespread prejudice of branding pastoralism as perilous to the environment. We set out to conduct a study to examine and test pastoralists’ customary norms that underpin environmental sustainability/unsustainabity of pastoral commons focusing on Mwanda-Marungu, in Taita hills, Kenya where the first author originates and brought up as a pastoralist up to the age of 24. Through ethnographic approaches and semi-open interviews to 193 respondents conducted in 2019–2021 during water and pasture stress during the dry months of July–October, we examined whether customary governance of Mwanda-Marungu would offer sustainable model that conforms to the IUCN’s Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs). Our study showed that pastoral communities in this area have been developing inventive measures for generations that improve good management and ecological protection. These may be tied to the principles of OECMs which contests the misconception about pastoralism.

A bolder conservation future for Indonesia by prioritising biodiversity, carbon and unique ecosystems in Sulawesi

As more ambitious protected area (PA) targets for the post-2020 global biodiversity framework are set beyond Aichi Target 11, renew thinking into spatial prioritisation is required to enable PA expansion that maximises environmental values. Our study focuses on the biodiverse and forest-rich Indonesian island of Sulawesi, which has a terrestrial PA network that covers 10% of the island. We used Marxan to investigate trade-offs in the design of an expanded PA network that prioritised different conservation features (biodiversity, forest cover, carbon stock, karst and valuable metal-rich areas) under varying island-wide coverage targets (17%, 30%, and 50%). Our first scenario, which required existing PAs to be selected, required larger areas to meet these coverage targets, in contrast to our second scenario, which allowed for any part of the island to be chosen, irrespective of PA status. The vast Mekongga and Bangkiriang Landscapes, and Gorontalo corridor were consistently identified as a high priority for protection under all scenarios. To meet our conservation targets through expanding current PAs, creating new PAs, and creating corridors that connect existing PAs, we used a spatially explicit three-phase approach. Our findings identified 26,508 km2 of priority areas to be included in the current PA network, potentially assisting Indonesia in meeting its post-2020 GBF target, if our approach is replicated across Indonesia as a national or sub-national analysis. We discuss various land management options through other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) and the costs to deliver this strategy.

Applying ensemble ecosystem model projections to future-proof marine conservation planning in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean

Climate change is altering marine ecosystems across the globe and is projected to do so for centuries to come. Marine conservation agencies can use short- and long-term projections of species-specific or ecosystem-level climate responses to inform marine conservation planning. Yet, integration of climate change adaptation, mitigation, and resilience into marine conservation planning is limited. We analysed future trajectories of climate change impacts on total consumer biomass and six key physical and biogeochemical drivers across the Northwest Atlantic Ocean to evaluate the consequences for Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) in Atlantic Canada. We identified climate change hotspots and refugia, where the environmental drivers are projected to change most or remain close to their current state, respectively, by mid- and end-century. We used standardized outputs from the Fisheries and Marine Ecosystem Model Intercomparison Project and the 6th Coupled Model Intercomparison Project. Our analysis revealed that, currently, no existing marine conservation areas in Atlantic Canada overlap with identified climate refugia. Most (75%) established MPAs and more than one-third (39%) of the established OECMs lie within cumulative climate hotspots. Our results provide important long-term context for adaptation and future-proofing spatial marine conservation planning in Canada and the Northwest Atlantic region.

Implications of EU environmental policies on agriculture in Europe and beyond

The European Union is taking several policy initiatives to combat climate change and the loss of biodiversity with direct impact on agriculture. For farmers the European Commission is promoting an instrument called OECM, Other effective area-based conservation measures. Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) are a new conservation approach, separate from protected areas, where conservation is achieved mainly as a by-product of other management. OECMs can be counted towards the EU target if: i) Conservation objectives and measures are in place; ii) the area is covered by a national or international legal or administrative act or a contractual arrangement achieving long-term conservation outcomes and iii) effective management and monitoring of the biodiversity in the area is in place. A new growth strategy that aims to transform the EU into a fair and prosperous society with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy where there are no net emissions of greenhouse gases in 2050 and where economic growth is decoupled from resource use. While those initiatives mainly impact the life and work of European farmers, there is as well an indirect impact to farmers elsewhere in the world

Preserving the woody plant tree of life in China under future climate and land-cover changes.

The tree of life (TOL) is severely threatened by climate and land-cover changes. Preserving the TOL is urgent, but has not been included in the post-2020 global biodiversity framework. Protected areas (PAs) are fundamental for biological conservation. However, we know little about the effectiveness of existing PAs in preserving the TOL of plants and how to prioritize PA expansion for better TOL preservation under future climate and land-cover changes. Here, using high-resolution distribution maps of 8732 woody species in China and phylogeny-based Zonation, we find that current PAs perform poorly in preserving the TOL both at present and in 2070s. The geographical coverage of TOL branches by current PAs is approx. 9%, and less than 3% of the identified priority areas for preserving the TOL are currently protected. Interestingly, the geographical coverage of TOL branches by PAs will be improved from 9% to 52-79% by the identified priority areas for PA expansion. Human pressures in the identified priority areas are high, leading to high cost for future PA expansion. We thus suggest that besides nature reserves and national parks, other effective area-based conservation measures should be considered. Our study argues for the inclusion of preserving the TOL in the post-2020 conservation framework, and provides references for decision-makers to preserve the Earth's evolutionary history.

Current trends suggest most Asian countries are unlikely to meet future biodiversity targets on protected areas

Aichi Target 11 committed governments to protect ≥17% of their terrestrial environments by 2020, yet it was rarely achieved, raising questions about the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework goal to protect 30% by 2030. Asia is a challenging continent for such targets, combining high biodiversity with dense human populations. Here, we evaluated achievements in Asia against Aichi Target 11. We found that Asia was the most underperforming continent globally, with just 13.2% of terrestrial protected area (PA) coverage, averaging 14.1 ± SE 1.8% per country in 2020. 73.1% of terrestrial ecoregions had <17% representation and only 7% of PAs even had an assessment of management effectiveness. We found that a higher agricultural land in 2015 was associated with lower PA coverage today. Asian countries also showed a remarkably slow average annual pace of 0.4 ± SE 0.1% increase of PA extent. These combined lines of evidence suggest that the ambitious 2030 targets are unlikely to be achieved in Asia unless the PA coverage to increase 2.4-5.9 times faster. We provided three recommendations to support Asian countries to meet their post-2020 biodiversity targets: complete reporting and the wider adoption “other effective area-based conservation measures”; restoring disturbed landscapes; and bolstering transboundary PAs.

Protected area personnel and ranger numbers are insufficient to deliver global expectations

The 2020 global spatial targets for protected areas set by the Convention on Biological Diversity have almost been achieved, but management effectiveness remains deficient. Personnel shortages are widely cited as major contributing factors but have not previously been quantified. Using data from 176 countries and territories, we estimate a current maximum of 555,000 terrestrial protected area personnel worldwide (one per 37 km2), including 286,000 rangers (one per 72 km2), far short of published guidance on required densities. Expansion by 2030 to 30% coverage of protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures is widely agreed as a minimum for safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem services. We project that effective management of this expanded system will require approximately 3 million personnel (one per 13 km2), including more than 1.5 million rangers or equivalents (one per 26 km2). Parallel improvements in resourcing, working conditions and capacity are required for effective, equitable and sustainable management.

Running to stand still: The application of substandard OECMs in national and provincial policy in Canada

Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) were introduced in the language of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 2011–2020 Strategic Plan for Biodiversity as a mechanism to formally recognize the contributions that areas beyond traditional protected areas can make to the effective, long-term, in-situ conservation of biodiversity. Since the international conservation community agreed to a definition of OECMs in 2018, various Parties to the CBD have begun designating these areas and they are now being reported in global and national protected and conserved area databases. Using examples from Canada, this perspective details how the designation of some OECMs is circumventing the use of established and well-known decision support tools that work to uphold conservation standards, and why these designations may result in negligible gains for biodiversity. The perspective also details how labeling OECMs as “marine refuges” and “conserved areas” is misleading and can misinform the public on conservation success. To avoid the loss of biodiversity in ‘paper parks’ and eroding public trust in the institutions charged with effectively conserving biodiversity, the paper concludes by underscoring the need for new tools to evaluate the effectiveness of OECMs and new measures to hold countries accountable to protected and conserved area targets in the CBD so that their original intent is not further compromised in the post-2020 era of conservation.

A Protected Area Connectivity Evaluation and Strategy Development Framework for Post-2020 Biodiversity Conservation

Maintaining and improving the connectivity of protected areas (PAs) is essential for biodiversity conservation. The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) aims to expand the coverage of well-connected PAs and other effective area-based conservation measures to 30% by 2030. We proposed a framework to evaluate the connectivity of PAs and developed strategies to maintain and improve the connectivity of PAs based on PA connectivity indicators, and we applied this framework to China’s terrestrial PAs. We considered that the concept of PA connectivity is at the level of both PA patches and PA networks, including four aspects: intra-patch connectivity, inter-patch connectivity, network connectivity, and PA–landscape connectivity. We found that among China’s 2153 terrestrial PA patches, only 427 had good intra-patch connectivity, and their total area accounted for 11.28% of China’s land area. If inter-patch connectivity, network connectivity, and PA–landscape connectivity were taken as the criteria to evaluate PA connectivity, respectively, then the coverage of well-connected terrestrial PAs in China was only 4.07%, 8.30%, and 5.92%, respectively. Only seven PA patches have good connectivity of all four aspects, covering only 2.69% of China’s land. The intra-patch, inter-patch, network, and PA–landscape connectivity of China’s terrestrial PA network reached 93.41%, 35.40%, 58.43%, and 8.58%, respectively. These conclusions indicated that there is still a big gap between China’s PA connectivity and the Post-2020 GBF target, which urgently needs to be improved. We identified PA patches and PA networks of ecological zones that need to improve PA connectivity and identified improvement priorities for them. We also identified priority areas for connectivity restoration in existing PAs, potential ecological corridors between PAs, and priority areas for PA expansion to improve the connectivity of PAs in China. Application of our framework elsewhere should help governments and policymakers reach ambitious biodiversity conservation goals at national and global scales.

Avoiding the misuse of other effective area-based conservation measures in the wake of the blue economy

Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) represent unique opportunities to help achieve the 2030 biodiversity conservation agenda. However, potential misuse by governments and economic sectors could compromise the outcome of these conservation efforts. Here, we propose three ways to ensure that the application of OECMs toward meeting biodiversity targets provide benefits for both people and nature.

Where ecologically ‘tis better to go brown than green: enhanced seagrass macrobenthic biodiversity within the canals of a brownfield coastal marina

At the start of the 21st century, a coastal residential-estate marina was developed on a previously degraded and polluted brownfield island site within Knysna estuarine bay, Garden Route National Park, South Africa, including the creation of 25 ha of new flow-through tidal canals. Canals near the larger entrance to this system now support permanently submerged beds of seagrass, which in turn support abundant macrobenthic invertebrates. In comparison with equivalent seagrass-associated assemblages present in natural channels around the island, those in the artificial marina canals were similarly structured and dominated by the same species, but the marina assemblages were significantly more species-rich (1.4 x on average) and were more abundant. Indeed, this area of marina supports the richest seagrass-associated macrofaunal biodiversity yet recorded from South Africa. The canals created de novo therefore now form a valuable addition to the bay’s marine habitat, in marked contrast to the generality that marinas developed on greenfield sites represent a net reduction in intertidal and shallow marine area and associated seagrass-associated benthos. If located and constructed appropriately, brownfield marina development and conservation of coastal marine biodiversity clearly need not be antithetical, and brownfield sites may provide opportunity for the location and management of ‘artificial marine micro-reserves’ or for the action of ‘other effective area-based conservation measures’ for soft-sediment faunas.

Reaching Global Marine Biodiversity Conservation Goals With Area-Based Fisheries Management: A Typology-Based Evaluation

In 2010, the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted the Aichi Biodiversity Target 11, calling for conserving 10% of the ocean through marine protected areas (MPAs) and “other effective area-based conservation measures” (OECMs), explicitly recognizing that other types of spatial conservation measures beyond areas designated as MPAs may also achieve biodiversity gains. Eight years later, CBD Parties adopted a definition and criteria for OECMs, and by early 2022, only a few OECMs had been reported. The OECM definition clearly requires that the measures be area-based and likely to contribute to conservation. However, conservation need not be their primary objective. Guidance on the extent and limits of what these “area measures” might include is needed. Clarity would assist countries in delivering on the CBD’s Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, with decadal goals incorporating an area-based conservation target, in which OECMs will play a crucial role. To achieve greater recognition of OECMs, countries require sector-specific guidance to guide recognition, listing, and ongoing implementation of OECMs. Here, we evaluate how well area-based fisheries management measures meet the OECM criteria as well as sustainable use principles, broader ecosystem management objectives, and more general biodiversity conservation goals. We systematically review case studies across a broad range of spatial management approaches to provide evidence of correspondence with the OECM criteria, arguing that many with primary objectives related to fisheries sustainability provide co-benefits for biodiversity, and hence biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. This review highlights how fisheries measures can help achieve a number of Sustainable Development Goals alongside the global targets for biodiversity of CBD.

Environmental DNA-Based Methods in Biodiversity Monitoring of Protected Areas: Application Range, Limitations, and Needs

Novel methods for species detection based on collection of environmental DNA (eDNA) are not only important in biodiversity assessment in a scientific context, but are also increasingly being applied in conservation practice. The eDNA-based biodiversity detection methods have significant potential for regular use in biodiversity status assessments and conservation actions in protected areas (PAs) and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) worldwide. Species detection based on DNA from environmental samples, such as water, sediment, soil, air, or organic material, has a broad application scope with precise, comprehensive, and rapid species identification. Here, we provide an overview of the application range of eDNA-based methods for biodiversity monitoring in PAs, evaluate environmental assessments in which this technology has already been implemented for nature conservation, and examine the challenges that can hamper further application in real world practice. Based on the outcomes of two projects, practical experience, and current scientific literature focusing on their application, we conclude that eDNA-based species detection methods provide promising novel approaches that have strong potential as supplement methods, or in some cases even as substitutes for the conventional monitoring methods used for PAs. This advancement is expected to affect decision-making in biodiversity conservation efforts in PAs and OECMs.

Climate Change Reveals Contractions and Expansions in the Distribution of Suitable Habitats for the Neglected Crop Wild Relatives of the Genus Vigna (Savi) in Benin

Sustainable conservation of crop wild relatives is one of the pathways to securing global food security amid climate change threats to biodiversity. However, their conservation is partly limited by spatio-temporal distribution knowledge gaps mostly because they are not morphologically charismatic species to attract conservation attention. Therefore, to contribute to the conservation planning of crop wild relatives, this study assessed the present-day distribution and predicted the potential effect of climate change on the distribution of 15 Vigna crop wild relative taxa in Benin under two future climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) at the 2055-time horizon. MaxEnt model, species occurrence records, and a combination of climate- and soil-related variables were used. The model performed well (AUC, mean = 0.957; TSS, mean = 0.774). The model showed that (i) precipitation of the driest quarter and isothermality were the dominant environmental variables influencing the distribution of the 15 wild Vigna species in Benin; (ii) about half of the total land area of Benin was potentially a suitable habitat of the studied species under the present climate; (iii) nearly one-third of the species may shift their potentially suitable habitat ranges northwards and about half of the species may lose their suitable habitats by 5 to 40% by 2055 due to climate change; and (iv) the existing protected area network in Benin was ineffective in conserving wild Vigna under the current or future climatic conditions, as it covered only about 10% of the total potentially suitable habitat of the studied species. The study concludes that climate change will have both negative and positive effects on the habitat suitability distribution of Vigna crop wild relatives in Benin such that the use of the existing protected areas alone may not be the only best option to conserve the wild Vigna diversity. Integrating multiple in situ and ex situ conservation approaches taking into account “other effective area-based conservation measures” is recommended. This study provides a crucial step towards the development of sustainable conservation strategies for Vigna crop wild relatives in Benin and West Africa.

Habitat Protection Indexes - new monitoring measures for the conservation of coastal and marine habitats

A worldwide call to implement habitat protection aims to halt biodiversity loss. We constructed an open-source, standardized, and reproducible workflow that calculates two indexes to monitor the extent of coastal and marine habitats within protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures. The Local Proportion of Habitats Protected Index (LPHPI) pinpoints the jurisdictions with the greatest opportunity to expand their protected or conserved areas, while the Global Proportion of Habitats Protected Index (GPHPI) showcases which jurisdictions contribute the most area to the protection of these habitats globally. We also evaluated which jurisdictions have the highest opportunity to contribute globally to protecting habitats by meeting a target of 30% coverage. We found that Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ) have the greatest potential to do so. Our workflow can also be easily extended to terrestrial and freshwater habitats. These indexes are helpful to monitor aspects of the Sustainable Development Goal 14 and the emerging post-2020 global biodiversity framework, to understand the current status of international cooperation on coastal and marine habitats conservation.

Shifted to the South, Shifted to the North, but No Expansion: Potential Suitable Habitat Distribution Shift and Conservation Gap of the Critically Endangered Baer’s Pochard (Aythya baeri)

There are many challenges in biodiversity conservation, especially for migratory waterbirds because their survival depends on the availability of a suite of interconnected sites at different stages of their annual cycle. Due to habitat loss and degradation, the population of Baer’s Pochard (Aythya baeri), a migratory diving-duck, has declined to an extent that it has been listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN Red List. To better understand the habitat requirements of this threatened waterbird for its effective conservation, we conducted seven years of field surveys within its historical distribution range in the East Asian–Australasian Flyway including China and neighbouring countries, covering 563 observation sites at 185 locations. Twelve new locations were identified as habitats for this species. By combining our surveys with literature and citizen science birding records, 171 Baer’s Pochard’s presence sites have classified as migratory stopovers, wintering grounds and breeding and potential breeding habitats. We then used Maxent model to estimate the potential distribution range and updated and refined the current IUCN distribution map. Finally, we identified the key conservation gaps by overlaying the distribution with a recent remotely acquired global landcover map. Our results show that: (1) The southernmost breeding site is about 1400 km south of its current IUCN breeding range; (2) the northern most wintering site is 800 km north of the IUCN wintering range; (3) Six newly discovered sites in Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Jiangxi and Hubei provinces, China are confirmed to be used all year round; (4) Most sites (81.8%) are not located in protected areas (PAs), and the majority of the suitable habitats (90%) are not protected by the current PA network. Our findings reveal that great changes have taken place in the distribution of Baer’s Pochard and that there are many distribution overlaps throughout its annual migration circle (e.g., many historical stopover sites become breeding habitats). Moreover, the key habitats have retreated into eastern Asia, and most of the habitats overlap with urban developed areas and are outside of current PA network. Our study suggests that the existing PA network may be less effective for the conservation of this critically endangered species under predicted global climate change, and other effective area-based conservation measures should be part of the conservation strategy. More importantly, as the distribution of Baer’s Pochard covers at least 15 countries, closely coordinated cross-border cooperation would be critical for its future survival.

Nature-based climate solutions for expanding the global protected area network

Protected areas (including other effective area-based conservation measures) are a cornerstone of biodiversity conservation. Many countries are increasingly committed to expanding protected area coverage to 30%, which requires an increase in global annual spending from $24b to ~$140b (between $103b and $177b). We find that by trading nature-based carbon credits in voluntary carbon markets at the current average market price of $5 t−1CO2, 79 countries and territories can expand protected areas without capital deficit, together generate return on investments of $121b yr−1 and sequester 3 GtCO2eyr−1. Another 30 countries can meet at least half of their investment costs, and sequester an additional 2.8 GtCO2e yr−1. Additionally, we show that protection can extend to 33% of the Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) outside the existing protected area network. Our results point to the largely untapped potential of nature-based climate solutions to accelerate protected area expansion, thereby conserving biodiversity and mitigating climate change.