Tristan is an active volcanic island with rare wildlife and home to 245 British Citizens living in the world's most isolated settlement of Edinburgh of the Seven Seas, far from the madding crowd in the South Atlantic Ocean.

The British Overseas Territory of Tristan da Cunha in the middle of the South Atlantic is the world's remotest community.

The government of Tristan da Cunha, a volcanic archipelago in the south Atlantic and part of the UK’s overseas territories, has announced that almost 700,000 sq km of its waters will become a marine protected area (MPA), the fourth largest such sanctuary in the world.

In doing so, the community will safeguard the area’s wealth of wildlife, including sevengill sharks, the globally threatened yellow-nosed albatross and Atlantic petrel, rockhopper penguins and other birds that live there, and help the UK government achieve its target of protecting 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030. Further, this development is also supported by the Blue Belt Programme, which provides over 27 million pounds over a period of five years for marine conservation around the UK Overseas Territories and international organisations. 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was delighted at the development, supported by Britain’s “blue belt’ programme, as it meant the UK was now protecting 4.3m sq km, or 1% of the world’s oceans. He has exhorted other nations to follow the path.

The UK, which has a duty to protect wildlife found in all its territories, will be responsible for the long-term monitoring and enforcement of this vast area – three times the size of Britain and 2,400km from the nearest habitation, Saint Helena.

The announcement is the result of an international partnership 20 years in the making, involving the RSPB, the UK government and an international coalition of partners including National Geographic and the Blue Marine Foundation.

After joining the UK’s Blue Belt Programme, it will become the largest no-take zone in the Atlantic and the fourth largest on the planet. This means fishing, mining and any such activities will not be allowed.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants. The views expressed here are personal.)