Jones, Benji. “America’s Best Idea to Protect Its Oceans Has One Big Problem: It’s Not Working.” Vox, 23 May 2023, www.vox.com/down-to-earth/2023/5/23/23720486/marine-protected-areas-sanctuaries-fishing-conservation.   

 

The United States, a place known for its vast national parks and marine protected areas (that make up about 26% of U.S waters),concentrates these protected areas mostly in the central pacific. Though 26% of waters may seem like a lot since the protections are all mainly in one area it leaves much of the U.S open to oil drilling and excessive commercial fishing even in marine protected areas practices such as bottom trawling, leading to the degradation of marine sanctuaries are legal and shrill very harmful. Even though Biden had claims of extending and advancing the protected areas it is questionable how effective these measures have been.

 

This relates to environmental science because it analyzes the different protected areas in the US and what is being done that harms our environment in unprotected areas. Oil drilling has proved very harmful to our environment in terms of global warming. The commercial fishing shows a great example of tragedy of the commons where we are over using a resource that has potential to be renewable. This article also shows what the government is trying to do for the environment and how it’s potentially ineffective.