Data & Analysis

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De Facto Marine Protected Areas

  > Data & Analysis  > De Facto MPAs

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Marine areas that are established for reasons other than conservation, such as economic use, human health or safety, and protection of government or private property are called "de facto MPAs" (DFMPAs). These are places where activities are restricted by law for reasons other than conservation or natural resource management. Familiar examples include: safety, security, and danger zones, restricted areas, prohibited lightering areas, some anchorage grounds, and traffic separation schemes.

De Facto MPAs may function similarly to traditional conservation-based MPAs by limiting potentially damaging activities or reducing access to sensitive areas. Other DFMPAs do not affect people's day to day activities, and place few or no limits on fishing, bottom disturbance, or recreational boating.

The De Facto MPA database was developed by the MPA Center to catalog information about federal De Facto MPAs in the US from the shoreline to the offshore extent of the U.S Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Created using the publicly available Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), this database details the spatial boundaries and stores information about the location, purpose, jurisdiction, level and types of restrictions within all federal DFMPAs. The DFMPA database allows for spatial analysis of patterns at national and regional scales and is a useful tool for understanding ocean use patterns, analyzing potential use conflicts and ultimately as a component for nationwide marine spatial planning.

Snapshot of DFMPAs Nationwide

• 1,234 De Facto MPAs exist in the U.S. as of September 2005
• The majority do not restrict human activities
• DFMPAs cover 3 % of U.S. waters
• The Gulf of Mexico has the most area in DFMPAs, but the Mid-Atlantic has the greatest number of DFMPAs
• Danger zones cover more area than any other type of DFMPA
• The Coast Guard controls more DFMPA area than any other management agency
• About 1,500 km2, an area less than half the size of Lake Tahoe, is contained in no access DFMPAs
• The area of DFMPAs in no access zones is about the same as the area designated as no take reserves in the U.S.

DeFacto MPA Products

The De Facto MPA Database is a GIS database documenting the spatial boundaries of all De Facto MPAs in the U.S. This database focuses specifically on MPAs designated for purposes other than conservation and contains information regarding the type, management authority, size and activity restrictions for each MPA. The De Facto MPA Database is available for download as an ESRI geodatabase.

State of the Nation's DeFacto Marine Protected Area Report is a document that summarizes the spatial patterns of DFMPAs in the US through maps, charts, graphs and related analyses. It reports on DFMPA patterns at a regional and nationwide scale as of September 2005.

For more information

Mimi D'Iorio
GIS Database Manager
Mimi.Diorio@noaa.gov