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Revolutionizing Marine Conservation: Technology Solutions for Compliance in British Indian Ocean Territory

The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) has made significant strides in marine conservation efforts, with over 90% of its waters designated as protected areas. However, effective monitoring and enforcement of these marine reserves pose a considerable challenge due to their remote location and vast size. To address this issue, the Blue Belt programme is leveraging cutting-edge technology solutions to protect the Territory’s marine ecosystems.

Innovative Use of Satellite Technology

The Blue Belt programme has partnered with industry leaders like OceanMind and the Satellite Applications Catapult to harness the power of satellite technology for monitoring and surveillance purposes. This collaboration enables the team to access advanced satellite technologies that facilitate large-scale MPA management across BIOT, Pitcairn Islands, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena, British Antarctic Territory, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

Key Benefits of Satellite Technology:

  • Enables large-scale MPA management
  • Facilitates monitoring and surveillance purposes
  • Access to advanced satellite technologies

Machine Learning and Maritime Information Analysis

The integration of machine learning capabilities has significantly enhanced the ability to detect illegal fishing activity. By automatically analyzing satellite information, expert analysts can work more effectively to identify and corroborate various types of fishing activities. This technology empowers the Blue Belt team to focus on indicators of potential Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Machine Learning Capabilities:

  • Automatic analysis of satellite information
  • Identification and corroboration of various fishing activities
  • Focus on indicators of IUU fishing

Combining Satellite Data with External Information

Satellite information from Automatic Identification System (AIS), Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Electro-Optical (EO) satellite data, and Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) data is consolidated and cross-referenced against external databases, regional fisheries management organisations, fisheries rules, and regulations. This comprehensive approach enables the team to track and monitor vessel behaviour in and around BIOT’s remote MPAs, reducing the risk to these reserves.

Benefits of Combining Satellite Data with External Information:

  • Comprehensive tracking and monitoring of vessel behaviour
  • Reduced risk to remote MPAs

New Innovations for Monitoring and Surveillance

The Blue Belt programme is also exploring further innovations to support effective deployment of manned or unmanned maritime and aerial patrol assets. Satellite technology is being used for near-real-time monitoring and surveillance, identifying possible illegal fishing activities, and streamlining patrol planning exercises. Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) are being utilised to facilitate the patrolling of MPA borders, allowing enforcement vessels to respond quickly to suspected IUU fishing activities.

New Innovations:

  • Near-real-time monitoring and surveillance
  • Identification of possible illegal fishing activities
  • Streamlining patrol planning exercises

Success Stories: Pitcairn Islands

The Blue Belt team has successfully collaborated with OceanMind to review the effectiveness of technology-aided analysis and remote sensing capabilities in providing insights into marine activity in remote areas of UK sovereign waters. Regular fisheries compliance analysis of traffic around Pitcairn Islands is undertaken, correlated with satellite imagery to detect ‘dark’ or non-transmitting vessels operating in the area.

Success Story:

  • Review of technology-aided analysis and remote sensing capabilities
  • Detection of ‘dark’ or non-transmitting vessels

Conclusion

The Blue Belt programme’s innovative use of technology solutions has significantly enhanced its ability to monitor and enforce BIOT’s marine protected areas. By leveraging cutting-edge technologies like machine learning, satellite data analysis, and USVs, the team is well-equipped to address the challenges associated with protecting these remote reserves. As a result, new technologies are providing a valuable potential solution to the challenge of monitoring and enforcing these large-scale MPAs.