On Wednesday, the Balochistan government designated Churna Island as Pakistan’s second Marine Protected Area (MPA), as the World Wildlife Fund-Pakistan (WWF-P) reported.
Located approximately 6.8 km northwest of Mubarak Village in the Arabian Sea, Churna Island follows Astola Island, which became the first MPA in June 2017.
The non-governmental organization commended the Balochistan government. Dostain Jamaldini, Secretary of the Forest and Wildlife Department, and Sharifuddin Baloch, Chief Conservator of Wildlife, played pivotal roles in this achievement.
Like Astola, Churna Island hosts coral habitats and ranks as a biodiversity hotspot. Despite its ecological importance, the island is a popular spot for scuba diving, snorkelling, cliff jumping, jet skiing, and other recreational activities. It also serves as an essential fishing area for fishermen from Sindh and Balochistan.
The WWF-P press release stated that various human activities, including power plant development, single-point mooring, and an oil refinery, significantly threaten the marine ecosystem and wildlife on Churna Island. Recreational activities also affect the area.
Rab Nawaz, Senior Director of Biodiversity Programmes at WWF-P, called on the federal and Sindh governments to create more Marine Protected Areas, following Balochistan’s lead to achieve the 30 x 30 target.
Nawaz stressed the urgency of this initiative to counteract the damage from poorly planned development and climate change on marine resources. He claimed this effort would help restore marine ecosystems and protect marine life for future generations.
Muhammad Moazzam Khan, WWF-P’s Technical Advisor, highlighted Churna Island’s ecological richness. It harbours over 50 coral species, 250 fish species, and numerous other marine life forms. Designating it as an MPA is aimed at addressing biodiversity loss and protecting threatened species
. This designation aims to protect the diverse marine life and coral habitats from increasing environmental threats.){kind=link}