Achieving ambitious legislation to protect Ireland’s marine resources by 2025 and highly protecting 10% of its EEZ with a clear pathway towards protecting 30% by 2030
Ireland has a rich maritime heritage and a vast marine territory of approximately 490,000 sq km. However, just over 2.3% of its waters are designated as protected. In the EU, it has one of the smallest proportions of waters protected. Whilst Ireland has considerable work to catch up on, the time to do that is now. The Green Party is in Coalition. Ireland joined the High Ambition Coalition officially committing to 30 by 30. Planning and consultation activities are being undertaken to put protections in place.
The Becht Foundation is supporting a coalition of NGOs in Ireland in their political advocacy, public engagement, science, and legal research for robust, evidence based MPAs in Ireland. The coalition includes organisation such as BirdWatch Ireland, CoastWatch, The Irish Wildlife Trust, The Sustainable Water Network (SWAN), and Irish Environment Network amongst others. Collectively, they aim to achieve an ambitious legislation for designation and effective delivery of MPAs, 10% of Irish waters as highly protected by 2025, and ensure Ireland becomes a vocal champion for marine protections in Europe.
