International Waters learning Exchange & Resource Network

Sargasso Sea Commission forefronts science-led policy change

10 Jun 2024 | by f.vilar-denardi@unesco.org
Using up-to-date information from Duke MGEL and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, the Sargasso Sea Commission contributes to the third world ocean assessment and proposes an Important Marine Mammal Area for migrating humpback whales in the North Atlantic.

For over a decade, the Sargasso Sea Commission has coordinated voluntary collaboration of the Sargasso Sea. In 2011, a robust science case for the conservation of the area was produced – but with financing from two major agencies, this science case is currently being updated into the first socio-ecosystem diagnostic analysis for a high seas area.

Updated information from Duke MGEL and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, covering the ecological and socio-economic importance of the area, is currently being fed into the third regular process for the World Ocean Assessment.The Sargasso Sea has had its own dedicated chapter in this comprehensive UN assessment of the state of the Marine Environment since its inception, reflecting the area’s importance to the wider ocean.

Analysis from Duke MGEL on the migratory patterns of North Atlantic humpback whales has also contributed to the 11th regional Important Marine Mammal Area (IMMA) workshop, held in May in the Yucatán. The proposal for a humpback whale migratory corridor stretching from the Caribbean to the west coast of Greenland and the Barent’s Sea was submitted to the IMMA Secretariat of the IUCN Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force. IMMA designation is a fact-based, science-led, peer-reviewed process assessing proposed areas against a range of ecological criteria. Over the next few months, the proposal, along with 45 others arising out of the workshop, will be independently reviewed and considered for full IMMA status.

In addition to working to advance scientific understanding of the Sargasso Sea, the Commission is also implementing a comprehensive stakeholder engagement strategy designed by NLA International. The strategy is designed to share the structure of the project with the Guardians, Users, and Beneficiaries of the Sargasso Sea: a diverse range of stakeholders including policymakers, scientists, industry representatives, and more. An initial meeting with the shipping community was held in March, and a meeting with the fishing community is being planned. It is hoped that this process will generate stakeholder buy in and collaboration for the conservation of the area.

Commitment to an accurate and comprehensive scientific understanding of the Sargasso Sea and proactive and inclusive engagement with stakeholders can give rise to meaningful policy change for the ecosystem’s stewardship. As part of the GEF-UNDP-IOC-SSC project, a Strategic Action Programme for the conservation of the Sargasso Sea will be developed in partnership with the ten governmental signatories to the Hamilton Declaration, expert Sargasso Sea Commissioners, and other stakeholders.

The Sargasso Sea project has become something of a flagship for the BBNJ agreement. In particular, it is hoped that this project can generate lessons learned for data collection and analysis for the high seas, and for the stakeholder engagement process outlined in the BBNJ agreement. 

About the project

The Global Environment Facility-funded Common Oceans Program Sargasso Sea project (GEF-UNDP-IOC-SSC) is committed to facilitating a collaborative, cross-sectoral and sustainable stewardship mechanism to put in place a comprehensive conservation framework to protect the unique ecosystem of the Sargasso Sea. Led by UNDP, implemented by IOC UNESCO, and supported by a comprehensive network of partners, it brings together the regional fisheries management organizations, other UN-mandated bodies, national agencies and intergovernmental organizations and initiatives, the private sector, civil society and academia. 

As well as the GEF-UNDP-IOC-SSC project, the Sargasso Sea Commission is also supported by a sister project. Funded by the French Facility for Global Environment, and in partnership with the University of Western Brittany, Mar Viva, and the Sargasso Sea Commission, the ‘SARGADOM’ project focuses on two remarkable high seas sites – the Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic (‘SARGA’) and the Thermal Dome in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (‘DOM’). The project aims to contribute to the protection of biodiversity and ecosystem services and to facilitate the development of hybrid ocean governance approaches for the two sites.

For more information, please contact Fae Saspford [ fsapsford@sargassoseacommission.org].