Marine Protected Area

(The MPA data portal can be found here: MPA Data Portal)

The South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands Marine Protected Area (SGSSI-MPA) is one of the world’s largest MPAs, covering an area of 1.24 million km2 (an area 5 x larger than the UK). It was established in 2012 with the aim of conserving the rich marine biodiversity within the Territory’s maritime zone and provides a framework for our marine environmental management and research needs. Further enhancements were made in 2013 and 2019 and in April 2025 the area of the MPA  in which fishing is prohibited was greatly expanded following the second independent 5-year MPA review in 2024. Details of the new measures can be found within the latest legislation (SGSSI Gazette No 2 dated 22 April 2025).

Our no take zones (NTZ), where all fishing activity is prohibited, now cover 470,000km2 and include the most biodiverse regions of the seabed including all coastal waters of less than 100m depth as well as unique hydrothermal vent habitats and seamounts and trenches including the deepest part of the Southern Ocean (over 8000m deep in the South Sandwich trench). The NTZs, coupled with strict seasonal and spatial fishery management measures are designed to greatly reduce the overlap of foraging predator species including seals and penguins with the highly regulated fisheries.

Trawl fishing on the seabed is prohibited throughout the entire MPA along with any activities associated with the exploitation of hydrocarbons or minerals whilst the use and carriage of heavy fuel (HFO) by all vessels operating within the MPA is prohibited.

All fishing on the seafloor is prohibited across 95% of the MPA. Longline fishing for toothfish is limited to depths between 700- 2250 m covering less than 5% of the MPA area to conserve biodiverse seafloor habitats. The fishery is also restricted to just five months of winter, which has eliminated albatross bycatch in this high scoring Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified fishery. The South Georgia krill fishery is also confined to five winter months when most species of krill feeding predators including penguins, seals and whales are absent or at much lower densities around South Georgia. Krill fishing is prohibited across half a million km² of ocean around South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

The MPA measures are enforced by the year-round presence of the Government’s patrol vessel Pharos SG in order to reduce the threat of pirate fishing (IUU) activity. This has been all but eliminated since the introduction of year-round maritime patrols in the 1990s but IUU remains a great threat to the region’s ecosystem. GSGSSI needs to remain vigilante at a time when 10-20% of global fish catches are estimated to come from IUU activity. In addition to routine and targeted satellite surveillance, intelligence is obtained from many sources including the licenced fishing fleet and is used extensively to support the patrol vessel operations and to target our MPA surveillance. GSGSSI is grateful for the support it receives through the UK Government ‘Blue Belt Programme to assist with managing the MPA.

The MPA is subject to five yearly review to ensure that its measures continue to reflect the best available science. Scientific experts from BAS and Cefas and other institutions have worked with GSGSSI to develop and maintain a research and monitoring programme for the MPA to ensure the effectiveness of the MPA measures can be assessed over time. Details can be found within the research and monitoring plan for the MPA which was launched in 2021 with funding through the UK Government Darwin plus scheme.