Little-to-no industrial fishing occurs in fully and highly protected marine areas.

Journal: Science (New York, N.Y.)
Published Date: Jul 24, 2025

Abstract

There is a widespread perception that illegal fishing is common in marine protected areas (MPAs) due to strong incentives for poaching and the high cost of monitoring and enforcement. Using artificial intelligence and satellite-based Earth observations, we provide estimates of industrial fishing activity in fully and highly protected MPAs worldwide, in which such fishing is banned. We find little to no activity in most cases. On average, these MPAs had just one fishing vessel present per 20,000 square kilometers during the satellite overpass, a density nine times lower than that of the unprotected waters of exclusive economic zones.

Authors

  • Jennifer Raynor
    Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
  • Sara Orofino
    Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
  • Christopher Costello
    Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106.
  • Gavin McDonald
    Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
  • Juan Mayorga
    Environmental Markets Lab, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
  • Enric Sala
    Pristine Seas, National Geographic Society, Washington, DC, USA.

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