When "protected" means nothing: the state of Maldives' environmental safeguards

A damning audit of the country's flagship reserve – which was meant to be the gold standard and a model for environmental protection – suggests these failures stem from a systemic collapse of governance: overlapping mandates, absent accountability, and legal conflicts between agencies. If Baa atoll has failed this badly, despite UNESCO backing and dedicated resources, the prospects for 93 protected areas nationwide appear grim.

The audit questioned the transparency and integrity of the Baa Atoll Conservation Fund's utilisation, citing the lack of regular board meetings – only one between 2012 and 2016, and none at all in 2018 and 2020 – and the absence of an approved budget as well as the failure to publish annual reports or details of community projects. In the absence of such documentation, any progress made since 2012 could not be assessed, the report concluded. 

The report singled out the case of Bathalaa, an uninhabited island protected in June 2011 in light of turtle nesting and the diversity of birdlife.

At the time of designation, the island was already leased for agricultural purposes. The lease remained active for more than three years, legally permitting the leaseholder continued access. However, two years after the designation, the tourism ministry leased Bathalaa for resort development for 21 years. 

The tourism ministry failed to verify its authority before handing over Bathalaa in 2013, disregarding its protected status and enabling the private leaseholder to modify the island without regulatory oversight. In 2014, the leaseholder undertook several coastal modifications without mandatory approvals.

"The Biosphere Reserve Office received reports of illegal operations on Baa Bathalaa in 2014 and conducted an inspection. The office documented that the leaseholder was carrying out coastal protection activities, which were corroborated by satellite imagery. However, these modifications were done without the necessary permits or environmental impact assessment," the report stated. 

“As a result, it was not possible to mitigate the damage to the environment and the island has now been completely eroded. The [Environment Protection Agency] has identified the failure to obtain permits and conduct impact assessments as one of the factors for the island's erosion.”

The biosphere reserve contains three of only six protected areas in the Maldives that have management plans for the enforcement of protected status. The rest are mostly paper parks. Management of the South Ari Marine Protected Area (SAMPA) – the largest protected region in the country – only started last year, almost 14 years after designation.

Of the protected zones in Baa atoll, Olhugiri was to be managed by the islands of Hithaadhoo and Thulhadhoo together with the Baa Atoll Council and the Biosphere Reserve Office. But an MoU signed between the parties for the community-based conservation model expired four years ago. It hasn't been renewed since.

The audit highlighted the longstanding problem of unclear mandates in managing the country's 93 protected areas. The responsibilities of the environment ministry, the Environmental Regulatory Authority (which functions under the ministry), and local councils, which have jurisdiction over some protected areas, are not clearly defined.

"These overlaps in the mandate and the regulation make it unclear who is responsible for establishing and implementing management plans, leading to long delays in formulating management plans for some areas," the audit noted.

The audit blamed the lack of clarity for enforcement delays and the failure to take action against environmental degradation. Moreover, there were no clear communication procedures, no records of correspondence, and no proper monitoring of changes to marine life. 

A 2018 regulation on protected areas entrusted the former Environment Protection Agency with enforcement after formulating management plans. But a mandate change last year reduced the agency's role to regulating the management of protected areas and taking corrective measures.

The environment ministry and the rebranded EPA are based in the capital Malé. The Biosphere Reserve Office operated by the ministry is based in Baa Eydhafushi. 

The audit identified legal conflicts between protected area management regulations and the decentralisation law in areas that fall within the jurisdiction of local councils, resulting in a lack of cooperation.

The Baa Atoll Biosphere Reserve was established in 2011 following the Atoll Conservation Project undertaken by the UNDP and Global Environment Facility.