Palau National Marine Sanctuary: An 80-Percent No-Take Ocean Reserve

The Palau National Marine Sanctuary, enacted by Palau's National Congress in 2015 and fully in effect since January 1, 2020, closes roughly 475,000 square kilometers of Palau's exclusive economic zone, 80 percent of its national waters, to all fishing and mineral extraction. The Palau International Coral Reef Center (PICRC), a Koror-based marine research institute, helps administer the sanctuary alongside government partners, running reef monitoring, research, and community outreach that support enforcement. The remaining 20 percent stays open to small-scale domestic fishing, echoing the traditional Palauan practice of "bul", or temporary closures that let ecosystems recover. The sanctuary shelters roughly 800 marine vertebrate species, including nearly 30 marine mammal species and 60 species of sharks and rays.