Page 25 - Livre_MOW_EN

23 /
The Arctic Ocean stretches across 14 million square kilometres, bordered by the Russian
Federation, Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Canada and the United States.
UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention exists since 1972
and in 2016 counted 1,052 sites of cultural or natural
interest. Among these are 49 marine sites – mostly in the
tropics – listed due to their exceptional universal value.
They include the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns, Australia
and Mexico’s Revillagigedo Archipelago.
The human origins of global warming have been
proven. In the Arctic Ocean, this has caused
unprecedented melting of sea ice. In February 2017,
recorded temperatures were 15°C above normal.
If nothing is done, experts agree that the ice may
have disappeared completely in a matter of decades.
This would open a major maritime shipping route
between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans as well as
new opportunities for fishing, oil and gas, which is
why we must act urgently to enable protection of
globally significant Arctic Ocean sites by placing
them on the World Heritage List. This is the impetus
for the UNESCO project supported by the Prince
Albert II of Monaco Foundation and WWF Canada.
A MIGRATORY CORRIDOR
FOR THOUSANDS OF
MARINE MAMMALS
“The Arctic Ocean isn’t an isolated, lifeless place”,
exclaims Dr Fanny Douvere, marine programme
coordinator of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre.
“Ice is a very lively ecosystem!” The Arctic Ocean
is rich in phytoplankton, which forms the basis of
a complex food chain for the abundant fauna that
live there. Various studies have shown that this part
of the globe is an essential migratory corridor for
hundreds of thousands of marine mammals including
Steller sea lions and grey whales. It is also home to:
the largest fjord system in the world; polynyas where
ice formation and retreat influence oceanic processes
at a very large scale and to populations of bowhead
whales, beluga, narwhals and over 12 million
migratory birds for whom it is a breeding site.
Publication of this report is a key step in raising
public awareness of the importance of our oceans
– as well as the potential marine world heritage
in the Arctic – and of their role in climate regulation.
H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco has done a great
deal to bring to light the tremendous issues at stake
in preservation and protection of the Arctic, both
thanks to his Foundation’s support and to his own
expertise concerning the region, demonstrated
during his participation in other UNESCO projects
of recent years.