Overview

• Two studies in Science published July 24 combined AIS and synthetic aperture radar data with MPA regulations to assess industrial fishing across nearly 1,400 fully protected marine reserves.
• 78.5% of fully protected MPAs recorded no industrial fishing, and 96% logged under one day of vessel activity per year.
• MPAs lacking strict industrial fishing bans experienced up to eight times more vessel incursions than fully protected areas.
• AIS tracking missed 75–90% of vessels detected by SAR, exposing blind spots in traditional monitoring methods.
• Governments are adopting satellite and AI monitoring tools to target patrols and bolster compliance with global ocean conservation targets.