SHORT COMMUNICATION: DENMARK’S MARINE PROTECTED AREAS ASSESSED ACCORDING TO IUCN’S INTERNATIONAL DEFINITION

Abstract

A team of IUCN Commission Members has reviewed Denmark’s marine protected areas (MPAs) to assess whether they meet the IUCN international definition for protected areas. Of 332 assessed MPAs, 198 areas were found to fulfil the definition and were assigned an IUCN Management Category, covering 138 ‘IV Habitat/Species Management’ areas, 54 ‘V Protected Landscape/Seascape’ areas, and just a few areas in the remaining management categories. Bottom trawling was found to be a main factor for MPAs not fulfilling IUCN criteria. For Danish waters as a whole, the project estimated that 4.8 per cent fulfil the IUCN definition for protected areas, implying that Denmark is only halfway to meeting Aichi Biodiversity Target 11 to protect at least 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas by 2020.