Marine Protected Areas

The ocean covers over 70% of the Earth’s surface and comprises highly diverse ecosystems. This page summarizes the global status of marine protected areas and presents the most recent official statistics.

Explore marine protected areas How we calculate protected and conserved area coverage
%
Percent of the ocean covered by marine protected areas
Marine Protected Areas
km2
Total area protected

A guide to identifying an MPA's protection level

A science based tool to identify different types of MPAs, this guide connects MPA types with the outcomes they are expected to achieve.

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Distribution of marine protected areas

The global coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs) is 9.79%. The Global Ocean can be divided into areas within national jurisdiction (National Waters) and those in international waters (Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ))

MPAs can be more easily created by governments in national waters where there are dedicated legal systems in place. In ABNJ it is more difficult to create MPAs due to the complex legal framework in place. As such, the percentage of MPAs created within national waters is much higher than that for ABNJ. National waters represent 39% of the global ocean and at present, 23.00% of these waters are designated as protected areas. In contrast, only 1.45% of ABNJ, which makes up the remaining 61% of the global ocean, has been established as protected areas. At present, international discussions are underway to establish ways of simplifying the process to create MPAs in ABNJ. For more information on this, please see the DOALOS website.

National waters and the High Seas

National waters represent an area of coastal water extending out to the limit of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) at 200 nautical miles from the baseline of a coastal state. Coastal states have management jurisdiction over these waters, the resources within them and the resources in/under the seabed.

Marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ) are areas of the ocean that are not under the jurisdiction of any one country. Therefore, no individual nation has the sole responsibility for management of these areas. ABNJ includes both the ‘High Seas’ (all parts of the sea that are not included in national waters) and the ‘Area’ (the seabed beyond the limits of national waters). (For more information, see Agreement Under The United Nations Convention On The Law Of The Sea On The Conservation And Sustainable Use Of Marine Biological Diversity Of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction)

National Waters

  • % of Protected Area Coverage
  • % of Ocean that is National waters

High Seas

  • % of Protected Area Coverage
  • % of Ocean that is High Seas

Growth in marine protected area coverage

Over the last several years the number and spatial extent of marine protected areas have increased rapidly.

Protected Areas (17,105)

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Thematic Areas

Updated

Protected Planet Report 2024

Tracking progress towards global targets for protected and conserved areas.

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