partners using the same scheme but considering different preferences to ensure great
applicability of the project results. Local and regional stakeholders (e.g. management
bodies of protected areas, MPA managers) will benefit from these pilot activities
since they consist the first concrete example of coordinated application of marine
spatial planning (MSP) in the Mediterranean Sea able to significantly improve the
management and the monitoring of biodiversity and the ecosystem services provided
by MPAs.
Its main objectives are the refinement of a general framework, the development of
shared methodologies (spatial planning and monitoring) and geospatial tools for
multiple stressors assessment, the environmental monitoring and stakeholders
engagement seeking to structure and exchange information amongst MPAs on
biodiversity status, environmental variables, distribution and intensity of human
pressures focusing on vulnerable habitats of EU importance (e.g. coralligenous
outcrops and Posidonia meadows) (AMAre 2020).
Amongst the project priorities were: the redistribution of human activities reducing conflicts and increasing synergies; the implementation of well-designed monitoring activities shared and comparable across MPAs and habitats, allowing the
objective to comparatively assess the performance of single MPAs versus an MPA
network; the investigation of the potential to individuate early warning indicators of
changes; and the development of common trans-frontier regulations and best practices to deal with present and future drivers of changes. The final aim of AMAre is to
scale up strategies and recommendations at transnational level adopting an
ecosystem-based approach considering the goals of the Marine Strategy Framework
Directive (MSFD 2008) across MPAs.
The AMAre WebGIS (https://amare.interreg-med.eu/toolbox/geoportal/) created
by the project is a web-based portal for interactive visualization of the spatial data
collected in the study areas, organized in a common spatial infrastructure. The portal
combines data relevant for the management of the MPA such as administrative,
biodiversity, elevation, geology, habitats and biotopes, hydrography, monitoring,
oceanography and socio-economic threats.
1.4.2 The RECONNECT Project
The RECONNECT (Regional cooperation for the transnational ecosystem sustainable development) Interreg project studies four marine protected areas and Natura
2000 sites, each of them belonging to a different country, meaning Greece, Cyprus,
Bulgaria and Albania (RECONNECT 2020). The NATURA 2000 is the ecological
network for the conservation of wild animals and plant species and natural habitats
of community importance within the Union. It consists of sites classified under the
Birds Directive and the Habitats Directive (the Nature Directives). On the other
hand, the MPAs are areas designated to protect marine ecosystems, processes,
habitats and species, which can contribute to the restoration and replenishment of
resources for social, economic and cultural enrichment. The targeted ecosystems are
understudied in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regarding the rest of
1 Introduction to the Oceans of Tomorrow: The Transition to Sustainability
13
applicability of the project results. Local and regional stakeholders (e.g. management
bodies of protected areas, MPA managers) will benefit from these pilot activities
since they consist the first concrete example of coordinated application of marine
spatial planning (MSP) in the Mediterranean Sea able to significantly improve the
management and the monitoring of biodiversity and the ecosystem services provided
by MPAs.
Its main objectives are the refinement of a general framework, the development of
shared methodologies (spatial planning and monitoring) and geospatial tools for
multiple stressors assessment, the environmental monitoring and stakeholders
engagement seeking to structure and exchange information amongst MPAs on
biodiversity status, environmental variables, distribution and intensity of human
pressures focusing on vulnerable habitats of EU importance (e.g. coralligenous
outcrops and Posidonia meadows) (AMAre 2020).
Amongst the project priorities were: the redistribution of human activities reducing conflicts and increasing synergies; the implementation of well-designed monitoring activities shared and comparable across MPAs and habitats, allowing the
objective to comparatively assess the performance of single MPAs versus an MPA
network; the investigation of the potential to individuate early warning indicators of
changes; and the development of common trans-frontier regulations and best practices to deal with present and future drivers of changes. The final aim of AMAre is to
scale up strategies and recommendations at transnational level adopting an
ecosystem-based approach considering the goals of the Marine Strategy Framework
Directive (MSFD 2008) across MPAs.
The AMAre WebGIS (https://amare.interreg-med.eu/toolbox/geoportal/) created
by the project is a web-based portal for interactive visualization of the spatial data
collected in the study areas, organized in a common spatial infrastructure. The portal
combines data relevant for the management of the MPA such as administrative,
biodiversity, elevation, geology, habitats and biotopes, hydrography, monitoring,
oceanography and socio-economic threats.
1.4.2 The RECONNECT Project
The RECONNECT (Regional cooperation for the transnational ecosystem sustainable development) Interreg project studies four marine protected areas and Natura
2000 sites, each of them belonging to a different country, meaning Greece, Cyprus,
Bulgaria and Albania (RECONNECT 2020). The NATURA 2000 is the ecological
network for the conservation of wild animals and plant species and natural habitats
of community importance within the Union. It consists of sites classified under the
Birds Directive and the Habitats Directive (the Nature Directives). On the other
hand, the MPAs are areas designated to protect marine ecosystems, processes,
habitats and species, which can contribute to the restoration and replenishment of
resources for social, economic and cultural enrichment. The targeted ecosystems are
understudied in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regarding the rest of
1 Introduction to the Oceans of Tomorrow: The Transition to Sustainability
13