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COLOMBIA--The Man of War Shoal Marine Protected Area, St. Maarten's first National Park, was formally listed under the Special Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) Protocol on December 9, at the eighth Conference of Parties for the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife Protocol of the Cartagena Convention in Cartagena, Colombia. Also listed at the United Nations Environment Programme/Caribbean Environment Program meeting was the Statia National Marine Park and the Saba National Marine Park.

The listing process for an area is "quite a long and involved one" that required close cooperation with our partners at the Regional Activities Centre in Guadeloupe, the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance and our numerous partners within the region and abroad.

"It is quite an important step to have the first protected area and one of the youngest marine protected areas of the Caribbean listed under a protocol that falls under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme. With this listing, we will be able to better manage the park and ensure that we contribute to the biodiversity management of our marine resources," said Tadzio Bervoets of Nature Foundation. The Man of War Shoal Marine Protected Area is managed by Nature Foundation.

The SPAW Protocol is part of the Cartagena Convention. Eligible sites for listing under the SPAW Protocol are those coastal and marine areas that are ecologically important to the Wider Caribbean region. The listing of marine protected areas is done to sustain the natural resources of the Wider Caribbean region and to encourage ecologically sound and appropriate use, understanding and enjoyment of the areas. Ultimately, sites listed will contribute to a comprehensive and representative system network of protected areas in the Wider Caribbean region, across all bioregions and across the range of ecosystems within each bioregion.

On December 30, 2010, then Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Franklin Meyers signed a major step towards marine environmental protection and conservation for St Maarten, when he approved the establishment of the Man of War Shoal Marine Protected Area. The area includes the country's most ecologically and economically important marine habitat, including extensive coral reef areas and sea grass beds and was chosen to be a priority for official conservation, because of its intrinsic ecological, economic and cultural value.

The Man of War Shoal Marine Park is a home and migratory stop-over or breeding site for three IUCN Red List Species, 10 CITES Appendix I species and 89 Appendix II species. It is an area with a relatively healthy population of marine mammals, including migratory whales and dolphins, numerous species of shark, sea turtles and numerous fish species.

Studies have shown that biodiversity in this area, particularly coral reef density, is high and the economic goods and services, which the ecosystem provides, are in excess of fifty million dollars annually.

Studies conducted by Nature Foundation have shown that biodiversity in this area, particularly coral reef density, is high and the economic goods and services, which the ecosystem provides, are in excess of fifty million dollars annually. Also, compared to the period prior to the establishment of the Marine Park, fish abundance has increased some 10 per cent in fish species and, since fish travel from the Marine Park into other areas, this spill-over will increase fishing in local waters outside the Marine Park.