Projects to tackle climate change and protect the world’s ocean have been given a major boost with the first £16.2 million of funding from the UK’s £500 million Blue Planet Fund.
The programmes, financed from the UK’s overseas aid budget, will increase marine protection, tackle plastic pollution and the decline of global coral reefs, as well as using the UK’s world-leading expertise to help respond to marine pollution disasters such as the Xpress Pearl in Sri Lanka.
The UK is a global leader in marine protection and the £500 million Blue Planet Fund is central to our ambition to further climate and ocean action ahead of COP26 in November. We are pleased to announce the first five programmes under the Blue Planet Fund, totalling £16.2 million of funding.
• £5.7m for a new UK-led Ocean Country Partnership Programme, to tackle marine pollution at its source, create well-managed marine protected areas, and make aquaculture more sustainable by helping developing countries partner with and access the UK’s world-leading ocean science expertise
• £5m into the Global Fund for Coral Reefs, to help developing countries within the Caribbean, Indian Ocean, Pacific and Southeast Asia prevent the extinction of vital coral reefs
• £2.5m contribution to the Global Plastic Action Partnership, to tackle the scourge of plastic waste before it enters the ocean
• £2m into the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, to help developing countries fund coastal nature-based solutions to tackle climate change
• £1m into the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership, to help developing countries calculate and account for the value that a healthy ocean brings to their economies.
• £5.7m for a new UK-led Ocean Country Partnership Programme, to tackle marine pollution at its source, create well-managed marine protected areas, and make aquaculture more sustainable by helping developing countries partner with and access the UK’s world-leading ocean science expertise
• £5m into the Global Fund for Coral Reefs, to help developing countries within the Caribbean, Indian Ocean, Pacific and Southeast Asia prevent the extinction of vital coral reefs
• £2.5m contribution to the Global Plastic Action Partnership, to tackle the scourge of plastic waste before it enters the ocean
• £2m into the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, to help developing countries fund coastal nature-based solutions to tackle climate change
• £1m into the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership, to help developing countries calculate and account for the value that a healthy ocean brings to their economies.
In the run up to the UK hosting the COP26 climate talks in November, the government is working with developing countries to take action to protect and restore our oceans.
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