European Court of Auditors publishes new report on EU marine protected areas

The European Court of Auditors (ECA) published a new special report on 26 October 2026 examining the effectiveness of marine protected areas across the European Union and assessing progress towards the EU's 2030 marine biodiversity objectives.

The European Court of Auditors (ECA) published a new special report on 26 October 2026 assessing the effectiveness of marine protected areas (MPAs) across the European Union and progress towards the EU’s 2030 biodiversity targets.

Entitled “Marine protected areas – Designation alone is insufficient for meaningful protection”, Special Report 25/2026 concludes that the EU is unlikely to meet its targets of protecting 30% of its seas, including 10% under strict protection, by 2030.

The report highlights shortcomings in the implementation of conservation measures, fisheries management, funding, stakeholder involvement and monitoring. It also examines the challenges of balancing environmental protection with the socio-economic interests of coastal communities.

The ECA puts forward four recommendations to the European Commission, focusing on developing a coherent network of marine protected areas, strengthening conservation measures, improving stakeholder engagement and ensuring more effective management and monitoring.

The full report is available on the European Court of Auditors' website.