Marine protected areas in Ireland
Ireland: Marine protected areas was 2.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Marine protected areas in Ireland, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring. Measured in % of territorial waters.
Analysis
In 2025, marine protected areas in Ireland stood at 2.4%. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in Ireland peaked at 2.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.5%, in 2013.
That places Ireland 83rd out of 174 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Marine protected areas in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 1.5% | — |
| 2014 | 1.5% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 2.3% | +53.3% |
| 2016 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2.3% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 2.4% | +4.3% |
| 2025 | 2.4% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 2.1% | 1.5% | 2.3% | 7 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 2.3% | 2.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More climate change data for Ireland
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 18,098 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 3,665 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 14,433 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 13.83 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 515.47 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,902 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,899 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 2.7 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 7.17 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.0963 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in Ireland?
- Marine protected areas in Ireland was 2.4% in 2025, according to Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring.
- What is the highest marine protected areas recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.5% in 2013.
- How does Ireland rank for marine protected areas?
- Ireland ranks 83rd out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring, published as part of Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Marine protected areas are areas of intertidal or subtidal terrain--and overlying water and associated flora and fauna and historical and cultural features--that have been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment.