The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment has held the first Social Participation Committee of LIFE IP INTEMARES.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment today held the first Social Participation Committee of the LIFE IP INTEMARES project, the first and only integrated LIFE nature project granted by the European Commission in Spain and coordinated by the Ministry through the Biodiversity Foundation.
The Director General of Sustainability of the Coast and the Sea, Raquel Orts, has inaugurated this Committee, which has been attended by twenty national organizations related to socioeconomic sectors, such as fishing, tourism, naval, as well as the field of environmental education and information, among others.
Orts invited entities to get involved in a “unique scenario to promote and explore the opportunities that the marine areas of the Natura 2000 Network can offer to become reference areas for a new management model in which research and participation are key to decision-making”.
Specifically, he added that “economic activities compatible with the Natura 2000 Network at sea will be promoted”, including tourism, fishing activity and the promotion of sustainable marine products and services.
Among the various channels and spaces for social participation is the governance strategy, which will allow progress towards more inclusive models in the management of marine spaces.
The Social Participation Committee, an advisory and consultative body, aims to guarantee the information, active and coordinated participation of the agents involved in the conservation, research, use and management of marine spaces. Throughout this first meeting, its operation has been agreed and the different visions and expectations of the project have been shared.
INTEGRATION, PARTICIPATION AND INNOVATION
The LIFE IP INTEMARES, is the first initiative at national level that combines different European funds for the management of an entire network of protected areas in an effective, integrated and innovative way with the participation of the sectors involved and research as a basic tool for decision-making.
With a budget of 49.8 million, it has the contribution of the European Union’s LIFE Programme. The European Social Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund also contribute to its development.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment coordinates the project through the Biodiversity Foundation and acts as a partner through the General Directorate of Sustainability of the Coast and the Sea. The Spanish Institute of Oceanography, WWF-Spain, SEO/BirdLife and the Spanish Fisheries Confederation are also partners. In addition, it has the support and collaboration of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds and more than 30 organizations.
Over the next 8 years, an extensive programme of actions will be carried out linked to research, monitoring and surveillance, conservation, governance 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.
