2010
Blue Marine, with support from the Bertarelli
Foundation brokered a deal to
enable the creation of what was then
the largest marine protected area
(MPA) in the world around Chagos in
the Indian Ocean.
2012
Blue Marine partnered with the
government of Belize and the Bertarelli
Foundation to protect the Turneffe Atoll
in Belize, an area rich in biodiversity
and CO2 absorbing mangroves.
2015
Blue Marine and the Great
British Oceans coalition secured a
government manifesto commitment
to create a “Blue Belt” around all 14
UK overseas territories, hailed as “the
greatest conservation commitment by
any government ever”.
2015
The Great British Oceans
coalition, of which Blue Marine is an active
part, secured a UK government
commitment to create the world’s
largest marine reserve around
Pitcairn in the Pacific.
2015
Blue Marine launched Reserve Seafood –
an innovative label to celebrate the
success of sustainable fishing in Lyme
Bay and help fishers earn more from
their catch.
2015
Blue Marine’s research on bass resulted
in EU-wide measures to protect the
stock.
2016
Blue Marine secured the creation
of a no-take zone in 52.6 per cent of
Ascension Island’s waters.
2017
As part of the Great British Oceans coalition,
secured an even stronger manifesto
commitment from the UK Government
ahead of the June 2017 election to
protect over four million square kilometres
of oceanaround the UK overseas territories.
2017
In the summer of 2017, broodstock
oysters in Blue Marine’s Solent Oyster
Restoration Project spawned, releasing
millions of larvae into the Solent.
2017 - 2018
Blue Marine spearheaded a social media
campaign to encourage the public to
tweet and email their MPs, resulting
in 285 MPs from eight political parties
signing up to the Blue Belt Charter by
the end of 2018.
2018
The UK Government announced
a target of 30 per cent of ocean
protected by 2030, aligning with
Blue Marine’s long-term strategy.
2018
Azerbaijan declared the first MPA in the
Caspian Sea, the largest inland body of
water on the planet. The new MPA will
seek to protect six significant marine
species on the brink of extinction.
2019
Blue Marine published its ground-breaking
four-year Potting Study, commissioned
by Defra, which evidences sustainable
potting levels in Lyme Bay as a model
for crab and lobster management
UK-wide.
2019
Following Blue Marine’s #StopElectricFishing
campaign, undertaken in
collaboration with Bloom Association,
the European Parliament’s Committee
on Fisheries voted to ban electric pulse
fishing in EU waters.
2019
With support from Blue Marine, 100 per cent
of the waters around Ascension Island
were designated a marine reserve,
creating the largest fully protected
marine reserve in the Atlantic, an area
nearly the size of France.
2020
Blue Marine instigated a social media campaign to encourage people in England to eat local fish in support of small-scale fishers impacted by the Covid-19 crisis.
2021
Destructive bottom trawling banned in four offshore areas, including Dogger Bank, following threat of legal action by Blue Marine.
2021
A byelaw, supported by Sir David Attenborough and Blue Marine through the Help our Kelp coalition, protected 300 square kilometres of seabed off the Sussex coast from damaging trawl fishing
2022
Ground-breaking report released, illuminating the levels of unauthorised fishing by EU vessels in Indian Ocean Coastal States’ Waters
2022
Following legal intervention by Blue Legal, the government adopted new byelaws banning bottom trawling in four offshore MPAs including the Dogger Bank SAC
2022
Blue Legal joined an appeal concerning the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station and successfully opposed EDF’s plans to proceed with the plant without appropriate mitigation or compensation measures in place for the marine environment
2023
UK government u-turned to support a moratorium on deep sea mining following a Blue Marine media and policy campaign.
2023
Blue Marine formed part of a ten-partner collaboration to launch the Solent Seascape Project - the first whole ecosystem restoration project in the UK.
2023
The Jersey government proposed plans to secure 27 per cent of its waters, supported by Blue Marine research and campaign.
2023
Blue Marine helped secure support from the Greek state for the first Greek permanent no-fishing reserves and seasonal fishing closure around Amorgos, spearheaded by local fishers.
2023
In partnership with Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance, Blue Marine advocated increased marine protection across the Dutch Caribbean to the Dutch and Island Governments. Aruba formally committed to creating an EEZ-wide MPA covering 25,199 km2 at the Our Ocean conference.
2024
An additional 166,000 sq. km of ocean at South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are fully protected from fishing thanks to campaigning from Blue Marine, in partnership with Pew Trusts and the Great Blue Ocean coalition.
2024
The Dominican Republic becomes the first Caribbean nation to protect over 30 per cent of its waters, following financial and scientific support from Blue Marine.
2024
In Greece, Blue Marine leads efforts to secure a government pledge to expand marine protected areas to 32%, including a ban on bottom-trawling.
2024
Blue Marine is involved in three major legal cases: challenging UK fisheries law, protecting marine areas in the Netherlands, and supporting the UK in international arbitration against overfishing.
2024
Less than a month after it forms, an alliance led by Blue Marine stops the reopening of longline fishing in the Maldives, ensuring it remains one of the few countries in the world to practise pole and line tuna fishing throughout its waters.
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