New York, NY (April 2, 2026) – A new study by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the University of Queensland, published in Ocean & Coastal Management, revealed that nearly three of the world’s four marine protected areas (AMPs) are polluted by wastewater. In the oceanic regions that are most critical to coral reefs and tropical marine life, the problem is even more serious: between 87% and 92% of protected areas are affected, and the typical pollution levels within these areas are ten times higher than in the surrounding unprotected waters. More than 16,000 AMPs worldwide were evaluated in the study, available HERE
Wastewater – used water from homes and businesses that flows into sewer systems to rivers and the ocean – carries nutrients, pathogens and chemicals that damage large ecosystems of coral reefs and seagrass and harm coastal wildlife. Previous studies have linked wastewater pollution to the decline of coral reefs around the world, the proliferation of harmful algae, and even the Alzheimer’s brain disease in dolphins. The consequences for populations are just as serious: polluted drinking water is estimated to cause up to 1.4 million deaths a year due to diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever, and up to $12 billion in economic losses.
These results come at a critical time for the global conservation of the oceans. World leaders are committed to protecting 30% of the ocean by 2030, a goal known as « 30 by 30 ». But this study suggests that the desire to protect more ocean areas could miss a fundamental problem: protected areas cannot fulfill their function if pollution continues to pour in.
« What we discovered was striking, » said David E. Carrasco Rivera, lead author and PhD student at the University of Queensland. » Using global pollution data, we mapped wastewater exposure on thousands of protected areas and compared it to unprotected water nearby. Region after region, conservation areas actually received more pollution than areas without any protection. «
The researchers analyzed exposure to pollution in 16,491 marine protected areas around the world, focusing closely on 1,855 protected areas located within 50 kilometres of the coast in six tropical regions: Australasia and Melanesia, Mesoamerica and the Caribbean, Coral Triangle, East Africa, Indian Ocean, as well as the Middle East and North Africa. They used a geospatial model to measure the amount of nitrogen from wastewater reaching each protected area, and then compared these levels to nearby unprotected water.
« Even a perfectly managed marine protected area will not benefit conservation and populations if wastewater continues to flow upstream, » said Dr. Amelia Wenger, WCS’s Global Head of Water Pollution. « You can’t erect a barrier in a protected area to prevent pollution from entering. The solution must be done on land, upstream, and this must be part of the way governments plan and fund the protection of the oceans. For the moment, this is not the case. «
The study calls on governments and conservation planners to take into account wastewater and other land pollution when designing marine protected areas and when measuring the effectiveness of these protections. The researchers cite the Global Biodiversity Framework, the international agreement that sets the 30×30 target on 23 interconnected targets, and warn that Goal 3, the zone protection objective, cannot succeed without also achieving other objectives of land and sea use planning (Objective 1), restoration (Objective 2) and pollution reduction (Objective 7).
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) saves wildlife and wildlife around the world through science, conservation action, education and people’s inspiration to value nature. To accomplish our mission, the WCS, based at the Bronx Zoo, harnesses the power of its Global Conservation Program in nearly 55 countries and in all oceans of the world, as well as its five wildlife parks in New York, visited by more than 3.5 million people each year. WCS combines its expertise in the field, zoos and aquariums to fulfill its conservation mission. Visit: newsroom.wcs.org. Follow: @WCSNewsroom. For more information: +1 (347) 840-1242.
Source : newsroom
