Crucial Meeting Could Expand Protection of Antarctic Waters
各国将讨论加大对南极的保护
Hopes are high this month’s CCAMLR meeting will extend Southern Ocean protection, despite pandemic disruption
尽管受到新冠疫情的影响，本月举行的CCAMLR会议仍有望扩大对南大洋的保护。
Environmental meetings this year have largely been postponed amid the pandemic, but a crucial one remains on the table. Twenty-five countries and the EU will meet online later this month to vote on extending protection of the Southern Ocean.
由于新冠病毒流行，今年的环境会议大部分已经被推迟，但仍有一个重大会议未受影响。25个国家及欧盟将在本月晚些时候举行在线会议，就扩大南大洋保护的议题进行投票。
The use of resources in the region is regulated by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). In 2002, the commission agreed to create a network of marine protected areas (MPAs), in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 14.6 to protect 10% of the global ocean.
该区域的资源利用由南极海洋生物资源养护委员会（CCAMLR）监管。2002年，该委员会同意依照联合国可持续发展目标14.6建立海洋保护区（MPA）网络，以保护世界10%的海洋。
CCAMLR member states took the first big step in 2009 when they agreed on an MPA to cover 94,000 km2 below the South Orkney Islands. Then, in 2016, the commission successfully negotiated the world’s largest marine park, covering 1.55 million km2 in the Ross Sea. (It’s called a marine park because unlike a permanent MPA, its status will need to be renewed after 35 years.)
2009年，CCAMLR成员国迈出了第一步，同意将南奥克尼群岛以南9.4万平方公里的海域划为海洋保护区。随后，2016年，委员会通过磋商胜利达成协议，在罗斯海建立全球最大的海洋公园，面积达155万平方公里。（之所以称为海洋公园，是因为其不同于永久性的海洋保护区，而是需要在35年期满后就是否延长保护期重新进行磋商。）
“Very few times is there an opportunity to bend history and change the trajectory. Today is an opportunity for that,” said Lewis Pugh, UN patron of the oceans. “Now is the time for Antarctica to be set aside for peace, science and for wildlife. When we go there, we go as guests.”
“人们扭转历史，改变未来发展轨迹的机会并不多。如今我们面前就摆着这样一个机会。”担任联合国“海洋守护者”（Patron of the Oceans）的刘易斯·皮尤（Lewis Pugh）称。“现在，我们应该把平静还给南极，把南极留给科学和野生动植物。人类应该以客人的身份去那里。”
The proposals on the table
讨论中的三项议题
This year’s CCAMLR meeting will be fully online and shorter than usual (26-30 October). That means less time to negotiate and no informal spaces, such as dinners and cocktail parties, to make progress in. Still, there are hopes that new protected areas will be approved.
今年的CCAMLR会议将完全采取线上形式，且时间比往年短（10月26日至30日）。这意味着谈判时间将减少，也没有晚餐、鸡尾酒会等非正式的场合。而在这些场合上往往会取得一些口头上的进展。尽管如此，新的保护区仍有望获得批准。
“It’s been difficult for countries to come to an agreement on what an online meeting actually means. They will have only a few days to negotiate instead of the usual two weeks. But the possibility of CCAMLR designating new MPAs is still there,” said Andrea Kavanagh, director of Pew’s Antarctic and Southern Ocean work.
“各国很难通过网络会议达成一致。通常他们有两周时间进行谈判，而这次却仅有短短的几天。但是CCAMLR仍有可能划定新的海洋保护区。”皮尤慈善信托基金会（Pew Charitable Trusts）南极和南大洋工作主管安德烈·卡瓦纳（Andrea Kavanagh）表示。
There are three MPA proposals to be discussed. The oldest one, with the best chance of moving forward, is to protect three blocks of ocean and ocean floor along East Antarctica, an area rich in cold-water corals and penguin foraging-grounds. It has been discussed for eight years in a row.
委员会将要讨论三项议题。其中，提出时间最早，也是最有可能推进的一个议题就是保护东南极洲的三片海域和海床。那里有大量的冷水珊瑚，而且是企鹅的觅食场所。到目前为止，该议题已经连续讨论了八年，但一直没有多大进展。
Also on the table is the creation of a 1.8 million km2 MPA in the area of the Weddell Sea, adjacent to the Antarctic peninsula, which was originally proposed by the EU and then supported by other countries. If created, it would be the largest nature reserve anywhere in the world.
另一项提案是在与南极半岛相邻的威德尔海域建立一个180万平方公里的海洋保护区。这个议案最初由欧盟提出，之后得到了其他国家的支持。如果这个保护区得以创建，那么将成为世界上最大的自然保护区。
Finally, there’s a proposal by Argentina and Chile to create an MPA to the west of the Antarctic peninsula. The area is particularly vulnerable to tourism impacts, fishing activity and global warming.
最后一个提案就是阿根廷和智利提出的在南极半岛西部建立海洋保护区。该地区特别容易受到旅游业、捕鱼活动和全球变暖的影响。
“I’ve been to all three locations. They are exceptional and some of the richest and most biodiverse places left on the planet. We have no right to push the animals living there to the verge of extinction,” said Pugh, who has swum in the icy waters of Antarctica. “They are the least touched areas in the world, but are still subject to big changes. Antarctica is everybody’s neighbour.”
刘易斯·皮尤说：“这三个地方我都去过。它们都异常珍贵，是地球上最富饶、生物多样性最丰富的地方。我们无权将生活在这里的动物推向灭绝的边缘。”皮尤曾在南极冰冷的海水中游过泳。“虽然它们是世界上人类涉足最少的地区，但仍面临着重大变化。南极洲是每个国家的邻居。”
Antarctica’s Southern Ocean comprises approximately 10% of the world’s ocean and is home to some of its rarest, most vulnerable and important ecosystems. Millions of penguins, seabirds, fish, seals, whales and krill, the region’s keystone species, live there and need to be further protected.
南大洋约占世界海洋面积的10%，是一些最稀有、最脆弱的重要生态系统的所在地。这里生活着千百万只企鹅、海鸟、鱼类、海豹、鲸鱼和磷虾。作为该地区的关键物种，它们需要得到进一步的保护。
Experts agree that MPAs are the best way to do so. Not moving forward with the three proposals currently under discussion could have big consequences for Antarctica’s ecosystems. This is especially so considering the environmental protocol currently in place (known as the Antarctic Treaty) is expected to be reviewed after 2048.
专家们一致认为海洋保护区是最好的保护措施。正在商议的三项提案如果无法取得进展，可能会对南极洲的生态系统产生重大影响，尤其是考虑到目前实施的南极环境协议（即《南极条约》）将在2048年后需要重新进行审议。
A weaker treaty could allow mining and fossil fuel extraction in the area. Geologists estimate that Antarctica holds at least 36 billion barrels of oil and natural gas. Setting an unhappy precedent, the continent’s rich living resources are already under threat from industrial-scale fishing, compounding the damage being done by climate change. Antarctic krill populations in some areas have declined by 70-80% over the past 40 years.
条约的约束力要是较弱，就会允许在该地区进行采矿和化石燃料开采。据地质学家估计，南极洲的石油和天然气储量至少达到360亿桶。这样的事情早有先例，南极洲丰富的生物资源不仅早已受到工业捕捞的威胁，还面临着气候变化造成的破坏。过去的40年中，一些地区的南极磷虾种群减少了70%——80%。
Differing national stances
各国立场
To create a new MPA, all 26 commission members – 25 countries and the European Union – must reach consensus. This has made progress especially challenging, given the differing interests of the negotiating countries. While some want no-take MPAs (where extractive industries are banned), others want to maintain their fishing rights.
要建立新的自然保护区，委员会全体26个成员（25个国家和欧盟）就必须达成共识。谈判国之间利益着眼点不同让推进谈判极具挑战性。一些国家希望建立完全的保护区（禁止捕捞等任何开采性作业），另一些则想要维护他们的捕鱼权。
China started fishing for Antarctic krill in 2009 and has rapidly expanded its activities since then. Along with Norway and South Korea, China is one of the three biggest Antarctic krill fishing nations, with Norway leading in terms of catch and processing capacity, and China leading in number of vessels.
中国从2009年开始捕捞南极磷虾，此后其捕捞活动逐步增长。目前中国是与挪威和韩国并驾齐驱的世界三大南极磷虾捕捞国之一。挪威以捕捞和加工能力居首，中国则以船只数量称雄。
“China has an interest in expanding its fishery activities in the Southern Ocean and the new MPAs could make that difficult,” said Julian Chen, a senior researcher at the Chinese environmental NGO Greenovation Hub. “There are also geopolitical issues. China is very conscious regarding long-term decisions in large areas.”
“中国有意扩大在南大洋的捕捞活动，而建立新的海洋保护区可能会带来阻碍，”民间组织创绿研究院的高级研究员陈冀俍表示，“这中间还有地缘政治方面的考虑。中国在做出涉及大面积区域的长期决策时是很谨慎的。”
Still, China has recently been changing its stance regarding MPAs, according to Nengye Liu, associate professor at Australia’s Macquarie Law School, moving from an opposition narrative to a more “proactive” one. “They now argue we need to know more about the protected areas before taking the next step. They want a research and monitoring plan,” he said.
不过，根据澳大利亚麦格理法学院副教授刘能冶的说法，最近中国对海洋保护区的立场正在发生变化，在语言的表述上已经从反对变为“积极”。“他们现在提出，在采取下一步行动前，需要更多地了解保护区。他们希望有一个研究和监测计划。”他说。
Creating a network of marine reserves in Antarctica offers the opportunity to conserve and study largely untouched natural areas, experts agree. Although they do little to reduce the effects of climate change, MPAs can help ensure other activities don’t exacerbate the impacts.
专家们一致认为，在南极洲建立海洋保护区网络是保护和研究这片尚未被开发的自然区域的一个机会。尽管海洋保护区对于减少气候变化的影响作用有限，但可以帮助确保其他活动不会加剧这些影响。
Protection efforts go beyond the Antarctic, with civil society organisations and experts calling for 30% of the global ocean to be protected by 2030 – an objective they consider crucial to safeguarding biodiversity. Currently, only a little over 7.5% of the ocean is protected by MPAs.
需要保护的也不仅仅限于南极，民间组织和专家呼吁到2030年将全球30%的海洋保护起来。他们认为这一目标对保护生物多样性至关重要。目前，海洋保护区仅占全球海洋面积的7.5%。
“We have a responsibility to act. Whether a country is a member of CCAMLR or not, every nation is an Antarctic nation. What happens there in preserving biodiversity and the climate system affects us all in a positive or negative direction,” said Jose Maria Figueres, former president of Costa Rica and founder of the Oceans Unite Initiative.
“我们有责任采取行动。无论是否是CCAMLR的成员国，每个国家都是南极国家。那里的生物多样性和气候系统保护的好与坏会对我们所有人产生积极或消极的影响。”哥斯达黎加前总统、海洋联合网络的创始人何塞·玛丽亚·费加雷斯（Jose Maria Figueres）说道。
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