shelters a great variety of natural resources and human activities including fishing,
wildlife, research, transport, tourism that historically have been exploited by different countries, mainly by the coastal states. The Alboran Sea represents a regional
Mediterranean space where North and South worlds merge, creating a geopolitical
region where marine resources and maritime activities should be managed from both
national and international perspectives.
1.2 Thinking the Future from Now
It is widely known that currently the planet is suffering a global change affecting the
Alboran Sea, its ecosystems and populations. In this context, it is necessary to set a
public baseline of the existing knowledge at present to be able to compare and
monitor future changes. This book reviews different aspects of the Alboran Sea to
help to understand the present situation from its origin. The first and important step
to update a paramount vision on this region is to understand the climatic, geologic
and oceanographic, including biochemical cycles, process which conform the rich
geodiversity, biodiversity, the productivity, and the sustainable use of the marine
resources. The fisheries management system should take into account regularly
marine environmental variability to achieve biological sustainability of marine
resources and consequently economic security to fishery-dependent stakeholders.
Well-funded policy-makers’ decisions require a sound scientific-based knowledge of
the interaction between the marine environment and commercial stocks. This is
because the role of marine environment in the evolution of fish stocks is sometimes
even more important than the one played by fishers in the commercial exploitation of
them. Finally, we should analyze the different aspects of political context that could
affect the management of the resources from the Alboran Sea in the context of
climate change. For this reason, and given the knowledge accumulated over the
years on both shores of this sea and its resources, an updated review of the current
state of knowledge is necessary.
The book could be divided into four blocks (1) oceanographic, geological, and
ecological contexts (Chaps. 2–7), (2) biodiversity and ecosystems distribution
(Chaps. 8–12), (3) fisheries resources and aquaculture (Chaps. 13–20), and (4) conservation, management, and marine policies (Chaps. 21–25).
1.2.1 Oceanographic, Geological, and Ecological Contexts
The first set of chapters corresponds to an introduction to the Alboran Sea from
different specialties ranging from aspects related to political geography and legislation, both atmospheric and oceanographic dynamics, and their repercussions on
climate, geological evolution, and processes currently dominant in the seabed and
ecosystems.
1 Introduction: Thinking the Future from Now
3
wildlife, research, transport, tourism that historically have been exploited by different countries, mainly by the coastal states. The Alboran Sea represents a regional
Mediterranean space where North and South worlds merge, creating a geopolitical
region where marine resources and maritime activities should be managed from both
national and international perspectives.
1.2 Thinking the Future from Now
It is widely known that currently the planet is suffering a global change affecting the
Alboran Sea, its ecosystems and populations. In this context, it is necessary to set a
public baseline of the existing knowledge at present to be able to compare and
monitor future changes. This book reviews different aspects of the Alboran Sea to
help to understand the present situation from its origin. The first and important step
to update a paramount vision on this region is to understand the climatic, geologic
and oceanographic, including biochemical cycles, process which conform the rich
geodiversity, biodiversity, the productivity, and the sustainable use of the marine
resources. The fisheries management system should take into account regularly
marine environmental variability to achieve biological sustainability of marine
resources and consequently economic security to fishery-dependent stakeholders.
Well-funded policy-makers’ decisions require a sound scientific-based knowledge of
the interaction between the marine environment and commercial stocks. This is
because the role of marine environment in the evolution of fish stocks is sometimes
even more important than the one played by fishers in the commercial exploitation of
them. Finally, we should analyze the different aspects of political context that could
affect the management of the resources from the Alboran Sea in the context of
climate change. For this reason, and given the knowledge accumulated over the
years on both shores of this sea and its resources, an updated review of the current
state of knowledge is necessary.
The book could be divided into four blocks (1) oceanographic, geological, and
ecological contexts (Chaps. 2–7), (2) biodiversity and ecosystems distribution
(Chaps. 8–12), (3) fisheries resources and aquaculture (Chaps. 13–20), and (4) conservation, management, and marine policies (Chaps. 21–25).
1.2.1 Oceanographic, Geological, and Ecological Contexts
The first set of chapters corresponds to an introduction to the Alboran Sea from
different specialties ranging from aspects related to political geography and legislation, both atmospheric and oceanographic dynamics, and their repercussions on
climate, geological evolution, and processes currently dominant in the seabed and
ecosystems.
1 Introduction: Thinking the Future from Now
3