History and Application of the Wilderness Concept in Marine Conservation

When applied to the sea, the wilderness concept of preserving large areas from human effects throws light on marine conservation ethics, pragmatism, and practice. I compared problems of land wilderness with those involving the sea, where social and technical preparedness for conservation lags behind that for the land. I describe marine applications related to wilderness and provide examples from various jurisdictions. Daunting marine attributes of scale, dynamism, and connectedness, as well as scientific and cultural uncertainty, weaken maritime application of the wilderness notion. Three main problems with this application are (1) protecting large enough areas, (2) defining desired marine ecosystem states with attendant roles for humans, and (3) addressing society's underdeveloped marine environmental awareness and ethics. The first relates to the practicality of establishing large preserved areas near populated compared with unpopulated areas. The second relates to accommodating coastal‐community subsistence given the ethics and realities of coastal poverty, indigenous peoples' status, and rural lifestyles. The third relates to public confusion over maritime governance, uncertainty over appropriate civility toward marine resources, and cultural expectations of freedom on the seas. These issues foster political indecision and strong opposition from some fishery and coastal‐community sectors to conservation of marine areas. Perhaps the value‐laden wilderness term still carries too much terrestrial preservationist baggage for sea areas that are viewed as commons by many. The wilderness ideal is but one point on a conservation continuum ranging from strict preservation to humans as part of nature. The laudable ideal of wilderness has a role in addressing the need for rapid progress in marine conservation, but we should be circumspect in applying the wilderness concept to the sea.