South Pacific
The six million sq km of the Coral Triangle, in the South Pacific, is home to the highest diversity of marine life on earth. It spans both South-East Asia and the Melanesia countries of the Pacific Islands region (namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Fiji).
Why is it important?
- About 75% of the world’s coral reef species can be found here, and 90 of the world’s 120 species of marine mammals either live in or migrate through the area.
- This is a home to seagrass beds and mangrove forests, which act as breeding and feeding grounds for various species of fish, invertebrates, reptiles and seabirds.
- The region is home to six of the world’s seven species of marine turtle, more than 3,000 species of reef fish, migrating populations of whale shark and manta rays, and a number of marine mammals, including 22 species of dolphin and dugongs (sea cows). Eleven species of whale breed, calve and raise their young in the region.
- The Coral Triangle supplies food and income to at least half a billion people. Some 80% of the coastal communities of the Pacific Islands region rely entirely on the sea for their food and livelihoods. Alternative sources of income and food are limited.
- Over 80% of the Pacific Ocean’s tuna resources come from the Pacific Islands region, supplying over 50% of the global tuna catch.
Challenges and threats
Natural resources are being depleted at a high and accelerating rate. This is due to the explosive growth of Asian fish markets and the insatiable demand for tuna and shrimp in the US, Europe and Japan. Global pressure from marine tourism drives countries to sacrifice the long-term benefits of keeping ecosystems intact for short-term economic gains. Local demand for food and space competes with these global pressures, enhancing the risk of instability and insecurity. This is further compounded by the multiple threats posed by global warming.
The implications of loss of habitat and natural resources are enormous. The threat in the Pacific Islands region is particularly severe because so much of the population relies entirely on the sea for food and livelihoods. Now is the time to act, before combined pressures permanently alter the region’s marine environment and the millions of livelihoods that depend upon it.
WWF in action
For over 20 years, WWF has worked in the region to address these challenges. We have carried out substantial site-based work with communities, worked with governments on policy reform, promoted best management practices for the private sector, and undertaken awareness campaigns.
Our work has already resulted in:
- the government and traditional leaders of Fiji committing to at least 30% of their seas becoming marine protected areas by 2020
- the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines signing up to collaborative actions for conservation in the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion
- the governments of Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia agreeing to prioritise conservation in the Bismarck Solomon Seas Ecoregion.
The Coral Triangle Initiative
Our Coral Triangle Initiative aims to scale up our efforts, and those of key partners and stakeholders, to address the accelerating threats to this region. Our vision is to create a healthy environment here by 2025, where key habitats and species are sustainably managed for the benefit of both people and nature. To make this a reality, we have the following goals by 2020:
- 10% of the coral reef habitats prioritised by WWF are protected and sustainably managed, with effective financing in place
- there is a zero decline in the populations of green, hawksbill and leatherback turtles from 2007 levels
- the degradation of key marine resources – coral reef habitats, turtles, reef fish, and tuna – is halted and reversed.
To achieve this, we are:
- working with Pacific Island governments, key stakeholders and donors to prioritise marine protected areas as a means of securing food resources, maintaining livelihoods and helping marine ecosystems to thrive.
- working with the government and traditional leaders of Fiji to ensure a third of their seas become marine protected areas by 2020
- working with regional fisheries management organisations to reduce unsustainable and illegal fishing practices, and promote sustainable solutions within the Pacific’s tuna fisheries
- seeking to reduce the accidental capture of turtles, sharks and juvenile tuna by long-line fishing methods (which involve setting a main line with hundreds of baited hooks) in the Pacific Islands region.
- seeking to create protected areas for turtles
- seeking to maintain the moratorium by the Fiji government on the commercial harvesting of marine turtles.