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Preventing plastics pervading an oceanic oasis: Building the case for the Costa Rica Thermal Dome to become a World Heritage site in ABNJ

Preventing plastics pervading an oceanic oasis: Building the case for the Costa Rica Thermal Dome to become a World Heritage site in ABNJ
Preventing plastics pervading an oceanic oasis: Building the case for the Costa Rica Thermal Dome to become a World Heritage site in ABNJ

World Heritage status for selected sites in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction is under active consideration, and the Costa Rica Thermal Dome in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean is a feasible candidate site. A scientific expedition to the area in April 2017 added to biological baseline data but also confirmed presence of microplastics in the water column. National and regional efforts are being made by Central American countries to strengthen mechanisms for integrated ocean management, educate coastal communities and give early consideration to potential future threats such as ocean fertilisation. This paper concludes that to achieve World Heritage status for this iconic site requires an entity to both propose the area and report on its status. Bringing into force the Antigua Convention, a Regional Seas Convention for the Eastern Tropical Pacific, would provide an appropriate platform for Central American governments to enact protective measures.

Eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, EBSA, Fundación MarViva, Microplastics, Regional governance, World Heritage Convention
0308-597X
235-242
Johnson, David Edward
ac1c7dcb-a817-47bc-aaaa-4a0e268c27d0
Ross Salazar, Erick
4da415a5-ae08-48cf-8f69-66fa82069c78
Gallagher, Anthony
10c86d9f-b22f-43b2-81bb-0319b7771845
Rees, Aldous
558a4de0-f156-44c5-8dc5-2240a8151de7
Sheridan Rodriguez, Carolina
ab70e3b2-0f41-4e04-8dc0-fccaf30cec6d
Cambronero Solano, Sergio
6538d50e-9094-49b5-8799-81139cb3fd67
Rojas Ortega, Gustavo
96abe699-71a4-4f73-8eba-93187e86ec8d
Barrio Froján, Christopher
4935e7ee-ac0f-41bd-b00b-2c5806561d74
et al.
Johnson, David Edward
ac1c7dcb-a817-47bc-aaaa-4a0e268c27d0
Ross Salazar, Erick
4da415a5-ae08-48cf-8f69-66fa82069c78
Gallagher, Anthony
10c86d9f-b22f-43b2-81bb-0319b7771845
Rees, Aldous
558a4de0-f156-44c5-8dc5-2240a8151de7
Sheridan Rodriguez, Carolina
ab70e3b2-0f41-4e04-8dc0-fccaf30cec6d
Cambronero Solano, Sergio
6538d50e-9094-49b5-8799-81139cb3fd67
Rojas Ortega, Gustavo
96abe699-71a4-4f73-8eba-93187e86ec8d
Barrio Froján, Christopher
4935e7ee-ac0f-41bd-b00b-2c5806561d74

Johnson, David Edward, Ross Salazar, Erick, Gallagher, Anthony and Barrio Froján, Christopher , et al. (2018) Preventing plastics pervading an oceanic oasis: Building the case for the Costa Rica Thermal Dome to become a World Heritage site in ABNJ. Marine Policy, 96 (10), 235-242. (doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2018.02.022).

Record type: Article

Abstract

World Heritage status for selected sites in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction is under active consideration, and the Costa Rica Thermal Dome in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean is a feasible candidate site. A scientific expedition to the area in April 2017 added to biological baseline data but also confirmed presence of microplastics in the water column. National and regional efforts are being made by Central American countries to strengthen mechanisms for integrated ocean management, educate coastal communities and give early consideration to potential future threats such as ocean fertilisation. This paper concludes that to achieve World Heritage status for this iconic site requires an entity to both propose the area and report on its status. Bringing into force the Antigua Convention, a Regional Seas Convention for the Eastern Tropical Pacific, would provide an appropriate platform for Central American governments to enact protective measures.

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More information

Published date: October 2018
Additional Information: Funding Information: An oceanographic survey expedition to the Dome was conducted on 3–6 April 2017 by Fundación MarViva of Costa Rica, the timing of which was informed by remotely sensed sea-surface temperature data showing the core area of the Dome close to the Costa Rica coast ( Fig. 1 ). The survey was part of a project led by the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI) and funded by Germany's International Climate Initiative (BMUB-IKI). The ultimate aim of the project is to devise and promote a governance scheme in the high seas area of the Dome. This is consistent with guidelines issued by the World Heritage Committee that encourage capacity building and international research cooperation needed for the effective implementation of the World Heritage Convention [22] . Participants in the survey included representatives from GOBI, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Universidad de Costa Rica, the Universidad Nacional, Fundación Keto, Asociación Misión Tiburón and Fundación MarViva. Funding Information: David Edward Johnson, Erick Ross Salazar, Gustavo Rojas Ortega and Christopher Barrio Froj?n would like to thank the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI) project, which is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag. DEJ, ERS and GRO would also like to thank Paul Tudor Jones and the crew of the Typhoon I, as well as Jos? David Palacios from Keto and Andr?s L?pez Garro from Misi?n Tibur?n for the acquisition and processing of mammal and plankton data. Carolina Sheridan Rodriguez and Sergio Cambronero Solano would like to thank University of Costa Rica and National University (Costa Rica), respectively. All authors express sincere thanks to Marco Castro (MarViva), Omar Lizano and Pedro Ure?a Mora (MIO CIMAR) for help with the production of figures. Publisher Copyright: © 2018 Elsevier Ltd
Keywords: Eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, EBSA, Fundación MarViva, Microplastics, Regional governance, World Heritage Convention

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 479896
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/479896
ISSN: 0308-597X
PURE UUID: 7930c158-c6d4-4888-8c90-169d67a3a4a1
ORCID for Christopher Barrio Froján: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-5562-5508

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Date deposited: 28 Jul 2023 16:44
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 02:17

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Contributors

Author: David Edward Johnson
Author: Erick Ross Salazar
Author: Anthony Gallagher
Author: Aldous Rees
Author: Carolina Sheridan Rodriguez
Author: Sergio Cambronero Solano
Author: Gustavo Rojas Ortega
Author: Christopher Barrio Froján ORCID iD
Corporate Author: et al.

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