ANSE is developing a project to conserve coastal sandbanks and coastal wetland meadows.

The Association of Naturalists of the Southeast (ANSE), with the support of the Biodiversity Foundation, has developed the project “Measures for adaptation to climate change through conservation of coastal sandbanks and coastal wetland meadows”. The initially proposed objectives have been met, contributing to improve the conservation status of habitats and relevant species of the lagoon ecosystem of the Mar Menor and other coastal sandy areas in the south of Alicante (C. Valenciana), in accordance with the guidelines of the buffering and adaptation strategy to the potential effects of climate change adopted for vulnerable coastal ecosystems, maximizing ecosystem services.

With this initiative, detailed information has been collected on the recent evolution of seagrass meadows in the Mar Menor lagoon. The total area occupied by Cymodocea nodosa meadows is currently 989.9 hectares, i.e. 13.5% of the area they occupied in 2014 (7,315 ha). The experiments carried out show that the grasslands of Cymodocea nodosa have a slower recovery rate than expected. It provides for the delimitation of priority areas for the conservation of seagrass meadows and the establishment of guidelines and practices for their effective conservation as a mechanism for adaptation to the effects of climate change in Mar Menor. La Manga del Mar Menor is a space vulnerable to rising sea levels due to climate change.

Within the framework of this project, the state of conservation of 2.95 ha of dunes and sandy areas has also been improved, more than 7,000 citizens have been reached through its own communication networks and 898 schoolchildren and 168 volunteers have participated in the activities.