Protect 30% of Earth by 2030? Report Warns ‘Paper Parks’ Are Failing Nature

The world can still meet its goal of protecting 30 percent of land and sea by 2030, but a new report warns of a wide gap between promises and real protection [1]. Many protected areas exist only on paper — known as “paper parks” — with legal status but little real enforcement [1]. “Right now, it can be more financially profitable to ignore the needs of species and nature,” said Maano Aunapuu, a unit head at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency [1]. The report calls for stronger action to turn pledges into real protection [1].

In Spain, a scientific committee has ruled in favor of classifying the Atlantic salmon as an endangered species, a decision that could lead to a nationwide ban on salmon fishing [2]. The committee advises the Committee on Fauna and Flora, a body that brings together Spain’s central government and regional authorities on wildlife conservation [2]. It found that the salmon (Salmo salar) meets the criteria for “endangered” status [2].

In Spain, salmon are found only in Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, the Basque Country and Navarra [2]. Listing the species in the Spanish Catalogue of Threatened Species would ban fishing and require measures to protect the fish and its habitat [2]. The government requested the report in April after the conservation group Saxifraga formally asked the Ministry for Ecological Transition to list the species as “endangered” across Spain [2].

Saxifraga argued the salmon meets at least two conditions set out in the royal decree that governs the Spanish Catalogue of Threatened Species [2]. First, the salmon has disappeared from 50 percent of the rivers where it once lived over the past 30 years [2]. Second, its populations in Spain have fallen by 70 percent over three generations [2]. The Scientific Committee confirmed the scientific validity of the proposal and agreed that both criteria are met, according to sources at the Ministry for Ecological Transition [2].

The next step is to inform the regional governments through the Committee on Fauna and Flora, where the proposal will be debated [2]. The scientific report comes after the worst salmon fishing season on record [2]. Asturias recorded 108 catches, down from 6,893 in 1969 [2]. Cantabria recorded just three [2]. These two regions are Spain’s main salmon fishing areas and the only ones that allowed catches this year [2].

Scientists are also calling for a new kind of conservation: protected areas designed specifically for insects, which are disappearing at an alarming rate worldwide [3]. Traditional nature reserves are created mainly to protect large animals like tigers, elephants, and pandas, but these areas often fail to safeguard the small creatures that keep ecosystems running [3]. Insects pollinate crops, break down waste, and serve as food for countless animals [3]. Without them, food supplies and entire ecosystems would collapse [3].

Researchers argue that insects need their own protected zones — places managed with their specific needs in mind, such as native plants, undisturbed soil, and safe breeding sites [3]. The proposal faces challenges [3]. Insects are tiny, numerous, and often overlooked [3]. Mapping their habitats and tracking their decline requires far more funding and research than currently exists [3]. Still, scientists warn that time is running out [3]. Some studies suggest insect populations have dropped by more than 70 percent in certain regions over the past few decades [3]. Creating protected areas for insects, they say, is no longer a luxury — it is a necessity [3].