Visiting One of the Most Pristine Oceans on Earth
Did you know Pitcairn is home to one of the largest marine reserves on earth? Here’s the backstory…
The project began March 2012 when the Pitcairn Islands Council began working alongside National Geographic’s “Pristine Seas” project and UK-based PEW Charitable Trust. Together, they set out to conduct scientific exploratory expeditions.
These expeditions were nothing short of spectacular. “The clearest visibility ever measured in the Pacific Ocean” is how marine ecologist and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Enric Sala described the waters around the British-governed Pitcairn Islands in an interview with Nat Geo. He went on further to say that Pitcairn’s waters were “hypnotic, teeming with schools of thousands of fish—red snappers, parrotfish, rudderfish—in an ocean from a thousand years ago.”
Scuba Driving Credit: PEW Trust
After these fruitful expeditions, the team prepared a proposal calling for the creation of a marine reserve to protect all that they had discovered and more.
On March 18th, 2015, The British Government established the Largest Marine Reserve in the World around the Pitcairn Islands. Covering an area of 841,910-square-kilometres, Pitcairn’s reserve is slightly larger than the state of New South Wales in Australia. Our waters are home to at least 1,249 species of marine mammals, seabirds and fish, the reserve protects some of the most near-pristine ocean habitats on Earth.
Humpback Whale at Oeno Island Credit: Christopher Pegman
“Pitcairn Islands Tourism is guided by the principles of sustainable tourism development. The marine reserve adds a new dimension to our tourism offering”, said Pitcairn’s Travel Coordinator, Heather Menzies. “Together with our World Heritage listed Henderson Island and our warm and hospitable people, who are a living history from the Bounty mutiny in 1789, we are a truly unique travel destination”.
With the support of a number of international scientific and conservation organisations, Pitcairn Islanders are committed to preserving our pristine environment. For international tourists, Pitcairn offers the exceedingly rare opportunity to visit some of the most intact natural marine areas in the world.
Sea Turtle Image Credit: Andrew Randall