{"id":63443,"date":"2026-04-18T17:31:30","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T15:31:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnestartit.com\/?p=63443"},"modified":"2026-04-22T09:20:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T07:20:49","slug":"new-protection-for-mediterranean-seagrass-meadows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/new-protection-for-mediterranean-seagrass-meadows\/","title":{"rendered":"New protection for Mediterranean seagrass meadows"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The meadows of Posidonia oceanica<\/em> and Cymodocea nodosa<\/em>, true underwater forests, play a key role both in preserving biodiversity<\/strong>, by providing shelter and food for many species, and in capturing CO\u2082<\/strong> from the atmosphere. Despite their importance, they are highly threatened by poor anchoring practices, sewage discharges, the construction of marine infrastructure, and rising water temperatures. In response to this situation, the central government approved a royal decree<\/a> on March 17 aimed at preventing these impacts and strengthening the protection of these marine phanerogams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Measures to curb the degradation of seagrass meadows<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The royal decree establishes a protection regime that limits the installation of new infrastructure<\/strong> such as gas pipelines, oil pipelines, and submarine cables, and restricts potentially polluting activities such as liquid or solid discharges. It also sets limits on new aquaculture facilities and nearby discharge points, with the aim of preserving these marine ecosystems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also prohibits anchoring on seagrass Meadows, one of the main causes of their degradation, and promotes low-impact mooring systems<\/strong>, such as eco-friendly buoys, to ensure that recreational use is compatible with their conservation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, it regulates the management of seagrass<\/strong> remains that accumulate on beaches, recognizing their ecological function, as they act as a natural barrier protecting sand from storms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, the decree strengthens research and monitoring of the condition of seagrass meadows, promoting their cartographic delimitation<\/strong>. This tool, long requested by experts and conservation organizations, is key to helping boaters avoid anchoring on these ecosystems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

A vital ecosystem beneath the sea<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Seagrass meadows form one of the most valuable ecosystems in the Mediterranean. They serve as habitat and breeding grounds for a multitude of <\/strong>species and form extensive communities that may take decades to recover if degraded. In addition, they act as significant carbon sinks and improve water quality.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short, the new regulation represents a firm step toward preserving<\/strong> a natural heritage essential to the ecological balance of the Mediterranean. Effective protection of seagrass meadows not only ensures biodiversity conservation but also strengthens efforts to combat climate change and supports the sustainability of human activities linked to the sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The challenge, however, will be to ensure compliance and the involvement of all stakeholders, from public authorities to coastal users, so that these underwater forests can continue to play their vital role for generations to come. In this regard, the Club reaffirms its commitment to protecting the marine environment and preserving seagrass meadows<\/a>, an essential natural heritage of the Mediterranean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The meadows of Posidonia oceanica and Cymodocea nodosa, true underwater forests, play a key role both in preserving biodiversity, by providing shelter and food for many species, and in capturing CO\u2082 from the atmosphere. Despite their importance, they are highly threatened by poor anchoring practices, sewage discharges, the construction of marine infrastructure, and rising water […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":63429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[534],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-costa-brava-en-2"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63443","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63443"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63443\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63446,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63443\/revisions\/63446"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.cnestartit.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}