The work, led by ICM-CSIC, focuses on the threat posed by the increase of cruise ships and recreational boats, and the construction of offshore wind farms, submarine pipelines for hydrogen transport and desalination plants.
A new scientific article led by the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC) in collaboration with the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), the Centre for Advanced Studies of Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), the University of Girona (UdG) and the University of Barcelona (UB), warns that the new wave of industrialization affecting the western Mediterranean may have “serious environmental and socioeconomic implications.”
The study, recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, takes the Costa Brava as a case study, integrating spatial and temporal data that highlight the impact of the activity of traditional and emerging sectors —such as fishing and aquaculture, recreational boating, cruise tourism, cargo transport, offshore wind energy, hydrogen pipelines or water desalination— and their interaction with the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) of the Natura 2000 Network and other areas of high value for marine biodiversity.
The results indicate that the good environmental status of these areas could be affected by cumulative pressures leading to impacts such as biodiversity loss, seabed degradation, the spread of invasive species and pollution.
“Our data show that the expansion and concentration of industrial activities within or close to areas of high ecological value is incompatible with conservation objectives unless much more careful planning and the precautionary principle are applied,” stresses Josep Lloret, researcher at ICM-CSIC and first author of the study. “It is necessary to avoid industrial development in Mediterranean coastal regions with the highest environmental value, such as the Costa Brava,” he states.
Economic link with protected areas and trends
The study points out that in 2023, 58% of port revenues were generated in ports located within a radius of two kilometers from the marine reserves of the Natura 2000 Network, and 74% of revenues were produced in ports located within or near other areas of high value in terms of marine conservation. At the same time, the study notes a drop in fish landings in Costa Brava ports, from approximately 15,000 tons in 2000 to 6,000 tons in 2023.
Likewise, the number of fishing vessels was reduced by more than half, from approximately 500 boats in 2000 to just over 200 in 2023. As for cargo transport, it also decreased by more than half during the same period, while local cruise passengers making short journeys between ports in the study area fell from around 400,000 in 2000 to 95,000 in 2023.
In contrast, since 2000 the number of berths for recreational boats in the marinas of the Costa Brava has increased (from about 9,000 in 2000 to about 15,000 in 2023), as well as the number of large (international) cruise passengers in the ports of Palamós and Roses (from about 900 in 2000 to about 52,000 in 2023), and the desalination capacity, which in 2023 stands at 20 cubic hectometers for the Tordera desalination plant in the municipality of Blanes, with plans to increase production of desalinated water to 80 cubic hectometers by 2029.
Finally, in the Costa Brava there are proposals to build a 450-kilometer submarine pipeline to transport hydrogen from Catalonia to France and more than 1 GW of offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Roses (considering the wind farm with the largest capacity of the 9 proposed within this development area defined by the maritime spatial plans).
According to Lloret, “these trends are a wake-up call: while traditional fishing is retreating, sectors such as large cruise tourism, recreational boating and water and energy infrastructures are growing. Without clear criteria for location and carrying capacity, the sum of pressures can degrade essential ecosystem services for the local economy of coastal towns.”
Sector-based environmental impact analysis
The research warns that a significant part of aquaculture and fishing activities take place within or very close to Natura 2000 MPAs and other areas of major conservation importance, with possible habitat alterations, overexploitation and changes in trophic networks. On the other hand, recreational boating and cruise tourism show very significant activity within or adjacent to areas of high ecological value, with effects such as noise pollution, anchoring, discharges or the introduction of exotic species. Finally, cargo transport is mainly located outside the Natura 2000 Network, although it generates, among other stress factors, noise, chemical pollution and risk of collisions with marine animals in nearby areas.
With regard to offshore wind energy projected in the Gulf of Roses and hydrogen pipelines, the projects are proposed within or very close to Natura 2000 MPAs and other key areas for the conservation of marine biodiversity, which makes it necessary to assess the effects on habitats, fauna, flora and the ecological connectivity. The environmental impacts of seawater desalination plants and hydrogen transport pipelines are still only partially known and require more time and research, the scientific team states.
“This is not about demonizing any sector,” notes biologist Josep Lloret, “but about siting and sizing them correctly. New industrial activities such as offshore wind energy, hydrogen transport pipelines or desalination plants must not come into conflict with conservation objectives or with local activities such as traditional fishing or sustainable tourism. That is why extreme caution is needed in managing any activity within Natura 2000 MPAs, prohibiting the development of new industrial activities there, and extending this caution to adjacent areas (at least 10 kilometers around Natura 2000 areas) and to all areas important for marine biodiversity.”
In this regard, the study points out that, in addition to Natura 2000 MPAs, the Costa Brava has an extensive network of other important areas for marine biodiversity, such as IMMAs (for marine mammals), ISRAs (for sharks and rays), IBAs (for birds), KBAs (for biodiversity in general), SPAMIs (Specially Protected Areas of Importance for the Mediterranean), fishing closures (such as the area for recovery of the hake habitat of Roses), and priority and high-potential areas for biodiversity conservation defined in the Spanish Maritime Spatial Plans (MSP).
In total these other areas cover 77% of the study area and do not have legal protection despite their high ecological value. Rafael Sardá from CEAB-CSIC stresses that “maritime spatial planning should take into account not only the MPAs of the Natura 2000 Network, but also these other areas relevant for marine biodiversity, preserving biological corridors that ensure the functionality and connectivity of the MPAs and allow the objectives of European and national biodiversity conservation policies to be achieved.”
“The key is to plan well to conserve areas of high ecological value in the Mediterranean, such as the Costa Brava. It is necessary to carefully study the impacts of industrial activities at sea and limit them based on scientific evidence, while also promoting the participation of coastal communities. Only in this way will it be possible to ensure that maritime activities are sustainable (that is, that they can be part of the Blue Economy) and compatible with the livelihoods of local communities,” the authors conclude.