This press release was originally published on PR Newswire.
“The Regional Government of the Azores announced the implementation of new marine protected areas covering 15% of the Azorean Exclusive Economic Zone. This decision corresponds to a new international alliance between the Regional Government of the Azores, the Oceano Azul Foundation and the Waitt Institute under the aim of promoting marine conservation, the sustainable use of the Azores, and the valorization of the region’s unique natural heritage, through the Blue Azores program.
According to the President of the Regional Government of the Azores, Vasco Cordeiro, this partnership will span generations, because this, “Work will not conclude in the time defined in this memorandum. We should view this work not as a point of arrival, but rather as one more step in the larger goal of preserving the Azores for generations to come.”
Ted Waitt, Founder and Chairman of the Waitt Foundation, said: “The vision and leadership of the Regional Government of the Azores is why we are here. With this path to Blue Prosperity, the Azores can be global leader in both marine protection and growing the blue economy. Our partnership will accelerate the Azores’ efforts to improve the long-term prosperity of the people while safeguarding the unparalleled marine resources that make the Azores unique.”
José Soares dos Santos, president of the Oceano Azul Foundation, believes: “The Azores can be an example on a global scale, in which natural capital is protected, promoted, and valued, with the integral involvement of its major stakeholders: the Azorean community. And, more and more, the world calls for joint actions, concerted efforts.”
The Blue Azores program focuses on the conservation and sustainable use of resources, involving education, economics and fisheries management. The Blue Azores is based on the following actions:
- Declare 15% of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Azores as new marine protected areas;
- Create and implement management plans for the new marine reserves and all existing marine protected areas;
- Develop and legally adopt a marine spatial plan;
- Develop studies and approaches contributing to the sustainable management of fisheries;
- Identify new areas of interest for conservation;
- Implement a blue literacy program for schools and the community.
The Blue Azores program will also support the Azores and Portugal to achieve the international objectives established by the United Nations Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the objectives of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature…”
Read on at: PR Newswire.
