OceanCare 193d ago

The 24th Conference of the Parties to the UNEP/MAP-Barcelona Convention just wrapped up in Cairo, Egypt. It brings together all Mediterranean coastal countries and the EU to implement the Mediterranean Action Plan under the UN Environment Programme – a collaborative framework for protecting the shared sea. A significant development: Ocean noise has been formally agreed as a common indicator to assess the Mediterranean's environmental status. This step might sound technical, but it's consequential. By establishing underwater noise as an official environmental indicator, Mediterranean countries now have a framework to identify and implement measures to reduce noise emissions from: 🔹 Shipping operations 🔹 Oil and gas exploration 🔹 Other industrial activities For years, OceanCare has advocated for noise pollution to be taken as seriously as other forms of marine pollution. Underwater noise disrupts and threats marine life – from the smallest organisms to the largest whales. 🐋 Making noise an official indicator means countries must now monitor and report on it. If noise emissions indicate the marine environment is not in a "good status" or certain species impacted, measures will need to be imposed to reduce it. #BarcelonaConvention #Mediterranean #UnderwaterNoise #MarineProtection