The LIFE IP INTEMARES project, coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment through the Biodiversity Foundation, will launch in this second half of the year actions that will strengthen participation, the exchange of experiences at an international level and the improvement of knowledge of marine protected areas to contribute to the effective management of the Natura 2000 Network in the Spanish marine environment.

The LIFE IP INTEMARES project, coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment through the Biodiversity Foundation, will launch in this second half of the year actions that will strengthen participation, the exchange of experiences at an international level and the improvement of knowledge of marine protected areas to contribute to the effective management of the Natura 2000 Network in the Spanish marine environment.

The actions planned until the end of the year have been agreed today in the third management committee of the project, which has had the participation of representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment, the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, the Spanish Fisheries Confederation, SEO/BirdLife and WWF-Spain, partners of the project.

During the management committee, the partners shared the progress of the project and outlined the route to be followed in the coming months. In the field of international cooperation, the LIFE IP INTEMARES project will be on the agenda of world events of reference in the field of marine environmental protection.

Specifically, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment will participate in the World Congress of Marine Protected Areas, which will take place from September 4 to 8 in Chile, as well as in the Our Ocean International Conference, in which states will present high-level commitments for ocean conservation in Malta from October 5 to 6.

In the field of scientific knowledge, two sub-working groups have been set up to analyse, on the one hand, the description of the habitats included in the Sites of Community Importance (SCI) and, on the other, to lay the foundations for inventorying habitats and species within the framework of the project, as well as to prepare cartographic information.

Before the end of the year, informative seminars will also be launched to publicise the project, expert workshops and initiatives that will encourage the active participation of the agents involved in the conservation, research, use and management of marine spaces. Likewise, new meetings and meetings will be held with coastal cities and autonomous communities to strengthen cooperation in the protection of the sea and the coast.

Effective management of the Natura 2000 Network

The LIFE IP INTEMARES project aims to achieve a network of marine areas of the Natura 2000 Network managed effectively, with the active participation of the sectors involved and with research as basic tools for decision-making.

Over the next eight years, an extensive programme of actions will be carried out linked to research, monitoring and surveillance, conservation, participation and training, as well as communication, awareness and environmental education on marine and coastal biodiversity and the Natura 2000 Network. With this initiative, Spain will be able to comply with the international commitment to effectively and sustainably protect more than 10% of its marine area.