The Review on the Status of Conservation of the Patagonian Sea is an initiative of the Forum for the Conservation of the Patagonian Sea and Areas of Influence, an international network made up of non-governmental organizations. The decision to undertake this project was adopted by the Forum during the plenary meeting held in Mar del Plata in July 2006. It is expected that the Review will be published during the first half of 2008.

The report will include original articles (principally in the form of a summary or review) on a variety of disciplines, written both by the organizations belonging to the Forum and by distinguished guest experts. The intended product is a printed volume that contains an overview of the current status of the Patagonian marine ecosystem and its biological diversity, based on:

• a review of its physical and biological characteristics;
  
  
• an analysis of the scope of the different human activities that take place in the area, as well as their consequences and externalities; and
  
  
• examples of the management and environmental indicators that can be measured objectively.

We intend that the Review should be a benchmark publication, due to: the quality of the data and the information it contains; the unprecedented level of cooperation between NGOs, and the prestige and scientific credibility of its contributors. As such, it has received much support from individuals and organizations from civil society and the world of science. The Editor- in-Chief is Dr Claudio Campagna (Chairman of the Forum) with the support of an editorial team that includes representatives of seven non-governmental organizations. Santiago Krapovickas (WCS) is responsible for coordinating the report.

Objective

The purpose of the report is to foster a process of training and awareness-raising on the importance of the ocean ecosystem, the magnitude of the challenges involved in its conservation, as well as the strengths and opportunities that can be used to achieve its sustainable management. Besides being a communication tool, the final document will also be an invitation to focus on the sustainable management of the ocean ecosystem. Our intention is that its dissemination and development should help to bring different sectors of society closer together through interactions and collaborative work designed to build common visions of and approaches to the different issues.

Study area

The Forum has adopted the assumed name of “Patagonian Sea” to designate a broad sector of the South Atlantic which covers the so-called “large marine ecosystem of the Patagonian shelf” and the waters that surround it. The aim of the Status Project is to make a diagnosis of this sector of the ocean in the broadest sense, from the high seas to the coast. The difference from other projects that focus on biodiversity is that it focuses on the integration of knowledge on the sectors furthest away from the coast, including the sea bed and water column, in order to produce a comprehensive description of the state of biodiversity and its future prospects.

The characteristics of the study area are:

• It is centred on the Malvinas / Falklands Current, understood to be the axis of the system.
  
  
• It includes the whole of the extensive Patagonian continental shelf.
  
  
• It is a trans-national oceanic area.
  
  
• To the south it borders on the area of the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.
  
  
• It covers the trans-zonal migration corridors of the ecosystem’s charismatic species (e.g. Magellanic penguin, southern elephant seal)
  
  
• It includes the most important oceanic fronts in the system year round.
  
  
• It covers the areas of greatest primary productivity described for this sector of the Atlantic.
  
  
• It includes exclusive economic zones and an area of high seas.
  
  
• It includes the large-scale fisheries of FAO Area 41.
  
  

Need

The scientific community and conservation NGOs share their concern over the status of the marine ecosystem associated with the Patagonian continental shelf. However, at present there are insufficient mechanisms and opportunities for dialogue on the subject of management of the biodiversity of the sea which bring together decision-makers and other genuine stakeholders, such as scientists and other interested parties in conservation and sustainable use of the ocean. Basically, the marine environment lies currently outside the regional public agenda.
The Forum for the Conservation of the Patagonian Sea has decided to create opportunities for dialogue, and for that reason has embarked on the first step, which consists of establishing a position agreed upon between the NGOs working in the area on the most important current issues concerning the use and conservation of the regional marine ecosystem. This review will provide collaborators and readers alike with opportunities for learning and reflection. Not least, the book will be a highly informative tool, integrating knowledge which would otherwise be scattered or inaccessible.

Audience

The target audiences for the Report are civil society organizations (in particular, those belonging to the Forum), opinion leaders, government officials, private sector representatives and the media.  

Format and style

When printed we estimate that with colour illustrations and maps, the report will be at least 300 pages in length. The Forum intends to publish an updated version of key elements of the report at regular intervals (ideally annually). The first edition will be in Spanish with an executive summary in three languages: Spanish, English and Portuguese.
The articles will be written in the language of popular science, with an educated but not specialist audience in mind.

Support

Besides the support of each of the member organizations of the Forum, a subsidy has been received from the Lighthouse Foundation (www.lighthouse-foundation.org) to carry forward this initiative. This is in addition to the funds especially committed to this project by Fundación Patagonia Natural and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Contact details

For further details, please contact the Technical Assistant for the “Review on the Status of Conservation of the Patagonian Sea” Project, Lic. Cynthia Fernández (cynsf@yahoo.com).