Following its stopover in the Balearic Islands, the LIFE A-MAR navigation campaign continued along the Catalan coast between 26 and 31 May, with awareness-raising and participatory activities in Girona and Tarragona.
On the morning of 26 May, at the Port of L’Estartit, a training session was held for nautical companies on good anchoring practices in Posidonia seagrass meadows and on the protection of marine species. In the afternoon, local teachers took part in a guided sailing tour of the marine site of El Montgrí, Illes Medes and El Baix Ter, where they were able to experience its extraordinary ecological value first-hand.
On 27 May, the activity was repeated with a new sailing trip open to the public, also departing from the Port of L’Estartit, bringing the values of the Natura 2000 Network closer to the general public.
The activities then moved to Tarragona, where on 30 and 31 May the project’s sailing vessel remained moored at the Port of L’Ampolla, serving as a meeting point and an awareness-raising hub open to visitors. On 30 May, a meeting was also organised with local socio-economic stakeholders to discuss the opportunities for sustainable development around protected marine areas.
On 31 May, the Catalan stopover concluded with a guided boat trip through the Ebro Delta Natural Park, including routes around the Fangar area and the Bay, in two sessions that gathered a large number of participants.
Marine Areas of the Natura 2000 Network in Catalonia
Off the Catalan coast there are 15 such marine sites. The navigation campaign visited two of them: El Montgrí, Illes Medes and El Baix Ter, in Girona, and the Ebro Delta, in Tarragona.
El Montgrí, Illes Medes and El Baix Ter is both an SCI and SPA, located between the counties of Alt and Baix Empordà. It is a specially protected area due to its environmental, landscape, historical and cultural values. The Medes archipelago, with seven islets and an approximate surface area of 23 hectares, has an outstanding seabed and is one of the most important marine flora and fauna reserves in the western Mediterranean.
The Posidonia meadows are among the best preserved on the Catalan coast. From depths of 15 metres, coralligenous communities, red gorgonians and yellow coral appear, all highly sensitive to human impact and climate change. Almost all Mediterranean underwater environments are represented on the seabed. Other protected species inhabiting its waters and coasts include the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and the Balearic shearwater (Puffinus mauretanicus), Europe’s most threatened bird species
The Ebro Delta is a vast marine area that includes the entire continental shelf and part of the continental slope under the direct influence of the River Ebro. It stretches parallel to the coast for over 140 km, from Cape Salou in the north to the Columbretes Islands and Castellón de la Plana in the south. It constitutes the largest aquatic habitat in Catalonia and is considered one of the most important feeding areas for waterbirds in the entire Mediterranean. Its marine section is among the most biologically productive zones, thanks to factors such as the river’s nutrient input and the upwelling of deep, nutrient-rich waters.
The Ebro Delta is a dynamic system, shaped by continuous natural processes and human transformations in recent decades. This site is also designated as an SCI and SPA. Some protected species inhabiting its waters include the sandwich tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis), the fan mussel (Pinna nobilis), and seagrass meadows of Cymodocea nodosa, which after Posidonia oceanica is the second most important seagrass species in the Mediterranean, both in terms of size and extent, providing vital shelter for a wide variety of marine life.
To download: EN Delta de L´Ebre (Tarragona) brochure
Brochure on the Ebro Delta–Columbretes Islands Marine SPA (Tarragona)
ES Folleto Montgrí-Les Medes-El Baix Ter (Girona)
Brochure on the El Montgrí–Les Medes–El Baix Ter SPA (Girona)
