Portuguese scientist leads first major mapping of Antarctic Ocean

Lisbon (Portugal), Jan 31 (EFE).- (Camera: Carlota Ciudad) The first major mapping of the Antarctic Ocean, which covers everything from its biodiversity to tourism and fishing, is under the direction of Portuguese scientist Catarina Frazão Santos, who is facing a titanic task to propose sustainable management of a region that is "fundamental" to mitigating the climate crisis.

"We don't protect the ocean because we like to see it, we protect it because we need it to survive," said this researcher from the Faculty of Science at the University of Lisbon, a marine biologist with a doctorate in marine spatial planning, in an interview with EFE.

Furthermore, "what happens in Antarctica does not stay in Antarctica", but affects the 3 billion people who live in coastal areas of the world, continues Frazão Santos, who recalls that this continent is capable of varying the sea level, the climate, the emission of oxygen and the capture of carbon dioxide and the preservation of marine fauna.

FOOTAGE OF LUSA SCIENTIST CATARINA FRAZAO SANTOS, AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LISBON (PORTUGAL).

SOUNDBITES IN PORTUGUESE OF FRAZAO SANTOS.

Translation of the scientist Catarina Frazão Santos:

1.- "In a simple way, what we intend with the PLAnT project is to identify the benefits and challenges of developing for the first time a marine spatial plan for Antarctica and a marine spatial plan that is climate-smart, that is, that integrates climate information and that manages to contribute to the adaptation and mitigation of climate alterations".

2. "Antarctica is a region that is being very... The polar regions, both Antarctica and the Arctic, but Antarctica in particular, is under very great pressure from the point of view of increasing climate change, and on the other hand it is also a region with increasing human pressure in terms of human uses, such as commercial fishing or tourism. If nothing is done, there will be more and more pressure, there will be more and more impacts and Antarctica will function less and less as a buffer and a regulator of the health of the oceans.

3. "When we talk about ocean conservation, it's not so that we can see a nice ocean that we can swim in during the bathing season because it's nice. No. It's about our survival as a species, it's about having the conditions to live in a healthy way as well, and that's a paradigm shift in our thinking about the importance of protecting the ocean. We don't protect the ocean because we like to see it, we protect it because we need it to survive".