A guide for planners and managers - IUCN

The Roles of
Protected Areas
Marine and coastal habitats may be protected individually or through national
or regional systems of marine protected areas (MPAs). The success of either
depends on the existence of appropriate legal frameworks, acceptance by coastal
communities, an effective and well supported management system, and the delineation
of areas so their boundaries are clear and they can be treated as self-contained units.
An MPA is formed by a part of the sea and (often) shorelands habitat designated
by the owner or custodian as a conservation area. Each MPA has boundaries and a
declaration of permitted and non-permitted uses within it. The owner or custodian
(public or private) grants authority to a specific entity to manage the area within the
MPA boundaries according to the purposes for which the MPA was created. A simple
example is a small island designated by the Government (owner) for protection of
nesting seabirds with no visitation permitted and which is managed by a Wildlife
Department. A complex example would be a multiple use area created by the
Government (custodian) wherein a variety of uses are permitted—line fishing, diving,
boating, beach use—but no removal of corals or disturbance of sand dunes is
permitted.
An MPA may be designated for any one or a combination of reasons (multiple
use): (1) it is the best example of an important ecosystem or habitat type; (2) it is needed
for sustainability of fisheries such as through “no-take” zones; (3) it has high species
diversity; (4) it is a location of intense biological activity; (5) it is a “natural wonder”