Studies and Reviews
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
ISSN 1020-9549 STUDIES AND REVIEWS No. 95 2015 MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL LAGOONS: SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND INTERACTIONS AMONG AQUACULTURE, CAPTURE FISHERIES AND THE ENVIRONMENT GENERAL FISHERIES COMMISSION FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN Cover photos and design Cover picture: Cabras lagoon, Italy (courtesy of D. Crosetti) Cover design: F. De Rossi and A. Nastasi STUDIES AND REVIEWS No. 95 GENERAL FISHERIES COMMISSION FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL LAGOONS: SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT AND INTERACTIONS AMONG AQUACULTURE, CAPTURE FISHERIES AND THE ENVIRONMENT by Stefano Cataudella, Donatella Crosetti, Fabio Massa (eds) FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2015 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO. ISBN 978-92-5-108792-3 © FAO, 2015 FAO encourages the use, reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product. Except where otherwise indicated, material may be copied, downloaded and printed for private study, research and teaching purposes, or for use in non-commercial products or services, provided that appropriate acknowledgement of FAO as the source and copyright holder is given and that FAO’s endorsement of users’ views, products or services is not implied in any way. All requests for translation and adaptation rights, and for resale and other commercial use rights should be made via www.fao.org/contact-us/licence-request or addressed to [email protected]. FAO information products are available on the FAO website (www.fao.org/publications) and can be purchased through [email protected]. PREPARATION OF THIS DOCUMENT This publication has been prepared within the project “LaMed – Strengthening cooperation on fisheries and aquaculture management in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea” implemented by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) in 2011–2012 and funded by the Directorate General for Fisheries and Aquaculture of the Italian Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies (MiPAAF). The LaMed project was divided into two components: • Component 1. Fisheries laws and regulations in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea • Component 2. Mediterranean coastal lagoons management: interactions between aquaculture and capture fisheries In particular, component 2 was designed and developed within the overall context of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) and ecosystem approach from an aquaculture perspective. The main objective of this component was to explore issues related to the sustainable use of coastal lagoons in the Mediterranean area, taking into consideration the ecological features and intrinsic fragility of lagoon ecosystems and the variety of management strategies applied in different countries and at different times. The goal was to gather elements for the development of a sustainable management strategy, also through the preparation of guidelines to be translated in a Mediterranean action plan for coastal lagoons management, within the framework of the GFCM objectives and mandate. This document represents the main outcome of the project and offers a comprehensive – although not exhaustive – review aimed at providing background information and technical support to administrators, managers and decision-makers. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This document is the fruit of team work; it could not have been completed without the cooperation and contribution of the national experts from the Mediterranean region. In particular, the invaluable contribution of all the authors of the country reports and case studies and their institutions is gratefully acknowledged: M. Cobani (Albania); F. Seridi and A. Bounouni (Algeria), S. H. Abdel-Rahman (Egypt), H. Farrugio (France and case study 3), S. Reizopolou (Greece), E. Ciccotti (Italy and case study 4), A. Joksimović (Montenegro), H. Nhhala, B. Abdellaoui and El M. Talbaoui (Morocco), M. Agraso and J. C. Macias (Spain), M. Hadj Ali Salem (Tunisia), H. Deniz (Turkey), T. Galvan, R. Lazzarini, G. Salogni (case study 1), D. Cebrian and M. Medialdea (case study 2), R. Poole (case study 4), P. Avila Zaragozá (case study 5). The authors would like to thank: the Directorate General for Fisheries and Aquaculture of the MiPAAF for funding this project; the autonomous region of Sardinia for hosting the “Meeting on Mediterranean coastal lagoons management: interaction between aquaculture and capture fisheries” (28–30 June, 2011); the Executive Secretary of the GFCM, A. Srour, for his continuous support throughout the elaboration process of this publication, and the GFCM Secretariat team, in particular A. Nastasi, D. Fezzardi and D. Bourdenet, for their precious feedback and support in the finalization of this document. iii Cataudella S., Crosetti D., Massa F. (eds). Mediterranean coastal lagoons: sustainable management and interactions among aquaculture, capture fisheries and the environment Studies and Reviews. General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean. No 95. Rome, FAO. 2015. 278 pp. ABSTRACT The Mediterranean region hosts around 400 coastal lagoons, covering a surface of over 641 000 ha differing in both their typology and use. Fisheries and various forms of aquaculture have been traditionally carried out in Mediterranean coastal lagoons since ancient times and are part of the cultural heritage of the region. Traditional lagoon management linked to extensive aquaculture and fish harvesting has certainly contributed, over time, to preserve these peculiar ecosystems, although much of the coastal lagoon areas have progressively disappeared due to land reclamation and other uses. Recently, coastal lagoons have become a relevant environmental concern: land claiming, pollution and the lack of management, among other factors, have strongly modified both the structure and functioning of these sensitive coastal ecosystems. In particular, the management of traditional aquaculture and capture fisheries activities has been identified as the main instrument to maintain lagoons’ ecological features and to prevent the degradation of their sensitive habitats, both from an environmental and socioeconomic point of view. To guarantee the sustainability of aquaculture and capture fisheries in lagoons, proper management plans should be established so as to ensure the preservation of both biodiversity and local knowledge. This should also be considered as a fundamental pillar for any programme aiming at the preservation and restoration of lagoons’ environment. This volume is divided into three main sections. The first part of the document (Part 1) gives an overview of the general context, with particular reference to the LaMed project carried out within the activities of the GFCM Committee on Aquaculture (CAQ) and to the main conclusions of an ad hoc expert meeting held in 2011, and presents a review of Mediterranean coastal lagoons summarizing the information obtained from literature and from country reports compiled within the project activities. In the second part (Part 2), eleven country reports collected from Albania, Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey are fully presented and offer an updated review of the state of Mediterranean coastal lagoons and of interactions among aquaculture, capture fisheries and the environment. Finally, five case studies are presented in the third part of the document (Part 3). These works have been selected by some of the experts of the LaMed project and provide insights on: 1) the lagoon of Venice, the most exhaustively studied coastal lagoon in the whole Mediterranean; 2) the Doñana area, an interesting example of productive wetlands dedicated to sustainable aquaculture in Spain; 3) the state of the European eel resource and its exploitation and elements for the preparation of a common management plan in the GFCM area; 4) the status of advice and management of European eel towards a stock-wide assessment and; 5) the indicators on the sustainability of Mediterranean coastal lagoons. iv CONTENTS PART 1. MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL LAGOONS: A SYNTHESIS REPORT 1 1. GENERAL CONTEXT 2 1.1 COASTAL LAGOONS WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE GFCM 2 1.2 THE LAMED-2 PROJECT 3 1.2.1 Objectives 3 1.2.2 Project strategy and implementation 3 1.2.3 Project outputs 6 2. SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT IN MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL LAGOONS: INTERACTIONS AMONG CAPTURE FISHERIES, AQUACULTURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT 7 2.1 HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF COASTAL LAGOONS 8 2.1.1 Etymology and definition of lagoons 8 2.1.2 Lagoons lifespan 9 2.1.3 Surface coverage, size range and ownership 9 2.1.4 Historical loss of coastal lagoon surface 10 2.2 ECOLOGICAL ISSUES AND FEATURES OF LAGOONS 11 2.3 A COMPLEX BIODIVERSITY 13 2.3.1 Seagrasses and seaweeds 13 2.3.2 Benthos 14 2.3.3 Fish communities 14 2.3.4 Birds 15 2.4 EXPLOITATION OF LIVING RESOURCES IN COASTAL LAGOONS 16 2.4.1