Goal: Catalyze the designation of marine protected areas (MPAs) covering 10% of Uruguay’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and progress a roadmap toward protecting 30% by 2030

The Alliance is partnering with the Uruguay Ministry of Environment, Corporacion Nacional de Desarrollo, to support the design of new MPAs based on good planning processes and stakeholder engagement. We are also partnering with the Wildlife Conservation Society, Vida Silvestre Uruguay, and Karumbe to provide technical assistance and training and improve national capacities for marine conservation, including capacity building for MPA managers. 

The Southwest Atlantic, including Uruguay’s marine territory, is one of our planet’s richest marine environments. Its surrounding waters support important migratory routes and key fishing species.  

The expansion of human activities in Uruguay’s marine environment, such as seismic prospecting, maritime traffic, submarine cabling, wind farming, and fishing, emphasizes the need for proactive planning and the establishment of conservation area-based figures as an essential strategy to conserve this unique haven of biodiversity.  

With multiple existing threats to marine biodiversity, including offshore oil and gas exploration, there is an opportunity to protect and safeguard some of Uruguay’s most important biodiversity areas before it is too late.

At the 2022 UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Uruguay’s Minister of the Environment announced the government’s commitment to protect 10% of their marine surface in the short term and initiate planning for the protection of 30% of Uruguay’s marine environment by 2030. To help realize these ambitions, the Alliance is working with partners to strengthen technical assistance and training, support stakeholder engagement, and enable institutional resources to improve marine management capacities.