PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
As stated in the forthcoming EU Nature Restoration Law, subtidal seagrass beds are critically endangered at the European Atlantic Coast and in urgent need of restoration. At least 30% of seagrass meadows have been lost over the past century, and the rate of loss continues to accelerate. These losses have been mostly caused by local pressures such as development, dredging, overfishing or eutrophication. Zostera marina, assessed as Critically Endangered by the EU Red List of Habitats, is presently the most endangered seagrass species in Portugal. This habitat has now disappeared from five of the eight historical locations and faces extinction from the Portuguese territory if measures are not taken to assure the protection of the last remaining populations. In Ria de Aveiro, its presence was not recorded for 10 years, but recently resurged in small intertidal patches, making this the momentum for active restoration measures implementation. LIFE SeagrassRIAwild aims at taking decisive steps to reverse the current conservation status of Zostera marina habitat (habitat 1150* – Coastal Lagoons) in Ria de Aveiro area (Natura 2000 site PTCON0061) through the co-development of cost-efficient and policy relevant NbS (Nature-based Solutions).
The project addresses the following policies: EU Habitats Directive, by recovering areas of priority habitat 1150* and implementing activities outlined in the national PAF; EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 through its aim to 'ensure no deterioration in conservation trends and status of all protected habitats and species by 2030'; Common Fisheries Policy, by improving habitat conditions for a high number of marine and estuarine fish species.
OBJECTIVES
LIFE SeagrassRiawild proposes a paradigm shift in seagrass restoration, enabling large-scale restoration programs with negligible effects on existing natural meadows, through the development of seagrass mariculture to support the plant and seed needs for restoration, as well as social engagement to enable it. Within this scope, the project will follow a transdisciplinary approach involving academia, authorities, management agencies, local administration, end-user associations and citizens in the co-design, prioritization and implementation of restoration actions, at a large scale and using targeted and adaptable Citizen Science initiatives and synergies with other national and EU initiatives. LIFE SeagrassRIAwild will explore innovative Nature-base solutions (NbS) to potentiate synergistic effects of seagrass conservation efforts and system management needs. If proven effective, these efforts will have the potential to become an innovative management service/product for port authorities, private marinas and management agencies. The NbS will potentiate the sustainability of the project and will be supported by tailor-made capacity building actions and the infrastructure legacy, which will perdure in time and be made available for national restoration programmes. To this end, SeagrassRIAwild is framed in the following specific objectives:
- Develop a stakeholder forum, that will act as a Community of Practice;
- Develop a robust Zostera marina mariculture to serve as source for restoration actions;
- Optimize nursery processes (harvest, maturation, storage, germination and genetic selection) to support restoration actions;
- Develop a system-wide seagrass rewilding program;
- Monitor and evaluate Ecosystem Service recovery;
- Develop an environmental education and training framework;
- Ensure the sustainability of the actions.
RESULTS
- Mobilise and engage local and regional stakeholders
- Co-develop strategies and solutions for restoration
- Mobilise and train 50 restoration practitioners and 60 volunteers
- Characterisation of the Z. marina potential donor meadows
- Construction of one mariculture infrastructure for the production of Z. marina individuals
- 8 ha colonised by Z. marina expected by the end of the project
- Development of optimised standard operational procedures for nursery activities (seed harvest, maturation, storage and germination)
- Effect of domestication on the genetic pool of mariculture populations assessed
- 4 ha of Z. marina meadows restored through classic and Nature-based solution activities
- Social engagement by local populations
- Drafting of an “Exploitation Plan”
