Protected areas are locations which receive protection because of their environmental value, or environmental plus cultural values. Examples include parks, nature reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries. Not included in the term are historic sites such as buildings that do not include natural environmental aspects, but some are "cultural landscapes" which reflect interaction of humankind and nature. The term protected area includes Marine Protected Areas, which refers to protected areas whose boundaries include some area of ocean. A large number of kinds of protected area exist, which vary by level of protection and by the enabling laws of each country or rules of international organization. There are over 108,000 protected areas in the world with more added daily, representing a total area of 30,430,000 km2 (11,750,000 sq mi), or over 12 percent of the world's land surface area, greater than the entire land mass of Africa.[1] By contrast, as of 2 February 2009, only 0.8 of one percent of the world's oceans are included in the world's ~5000 Marine Protected Areas.[2][3]
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