GUIDELINES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT OF SALTWORKS MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL I GUIDELINES FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT OF THE MEDITERRANEAN AND BLACK SEA SALTWORKS (MANAGEMENT MODEL) LIFE + MC-SALT LIFE + MC-SALT IN THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK Project “LIFE10 NAT/IT/000256 Environmental Management and Conservation in Mediterranean saltworks and Coastal Lagoons – Acronym: MC-SALT” GUIDELINES FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT OF THE MEDITERRANEAN AND BLACK SEA SALTWORKS (MANAGEMENT MODEL) IN THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK Massimiliano Costa (coordinator) Fabrizio Borghesi, Lino Casini, Zsuzsa Fidlóczky, Francesca Migani Project “LIFE10 NAT/IT/000256 Environmental Management and Conservation in Mediterranean saltworks and Coastal Lagoons –MC-SALT” Action D.8 “Elaboration of a management model for salt works” Steering Committee: Graziano Caramori; Massimiliano Costa; Dimitar Popov; Lorenzo Serra; Marc Thibault The Authors would like to thank the steering committee and the technicians of the project partners for their cooperation and for the revision of the text. Production: Ente di gestione per i Parchi e la Biodiversità-Delta del Po Designed and printed by: Tipolitografia Baraldi snc - Cento (FE) Cover pictures: Lino Casini (Flamingos) Massimiliano Costa (Dunaliella in the saltwork of Trinitat) Parco regionale del Delta del Po (Visitor centre in the saltwork of Cervia) Parco regionale del Delta del Po (Evaporation basins in Cervia) Parco regionale del Delta del Po (Sentry-box in the saltwork of Cervia) Marc Thibault (Habitat 1310, annual saltwort grasses) Fabrizio Borghesi (Saltwork of Molentargius) Photographers: Antoine Arnaud, Fabrizio Borghesi, Lino Casini, Massimiliano Costa, Patrick Rigaud, Marc Thibault, Parc-naturel-regional-de-Camargue, Parco regionale del Delta del Po, Tour du Valat 2016 ENTE DI GESTIONE PER I PARCHI E LA BIODIVERSITÀ-DELTA DEL PO Reccomended citation: Massimiliano Costa, Fabrizio Borghesi, Lino Casini, Zsuzsa Fidlóczky, Francesca Migani, 2016. Guidelines for the environmental management of the Mediterranean and Black sea saltworks (management model) in the Natura 2000 network. LIFE10 NAT/IT/000256. Summary Introduction 1) Basic aspects of the saltworks, including habitats and species, and cultural aspects at risk due to loss of traditional activities 1.1 General and specific characteristics of the salt marshes of the Mediterranean 1.1.1 The salinas of the Mediterranean 1.1.2 The functioning of saltworks 1.1.3 The abandoned saltworks 1.1.4 Saltworks as ecosystems and conservation areas 1.1.5 Pressures and threats 1.1.6 Alternative uses of saltworks 1.2 Importance of habitats and species associated with the management and the abandonment of salt production 1.2.1 Key habitats of saltworks 1.2.2 Key species of saltworks 1.2.2.1 Plant species (Annex II 92/43/EEC) 1.2.2.2 Bird species (Annex I 09/147/EU and other important species) 1.2.2.3 Fish species (Annex II 92/43/EEC and other important species) 1.3 Culture, folklore and traditions of the salt in the Mediterranean 2) Main forcing changes of former and active saltworks 2.1 Dinamycs of active saltworks 2.2 Dynamics of disused saltworks 2.3 Territorial changes affecting the salt marshes 2.4 Climate change affecting the salt marshes 3) Conflicts and synergies between the practices of salt production and biodiversity conservation, implementation of measures related to biodiversity in production sites and analysis of best practices 3.1 Issues of salt production in relation to the conservation of important species of birds and fish 3.2 Coastal retreat and management of coastal habitats 3.3 Synergies 3.4 Implementation of measures related to biodiversity in production sites - Analysis of best practices carri- ed out in southern France 4) Management of the environmental conditions favouring the main habitats (period of submersion, seasonal fluctuations of water levels and the onset of salt to help the species protection, including colonial nesting birds) 4.1 General planning management and strategies for conservation 4.2 Water levels management 3 4.3 Land habitats availability 4.4 Good practices for management aimed at conservation and habitat - species improvement in the treated saltworks 4.4.1 Maintenance of salt water circulation in the basins 4.4.2 Regulation and monitoring of water levels for bird colonies protection 4.4.3 Monitoring water quality 4.4.4 Monitoring of habitats and plants 4.4.5 Monitoring of animal populations of species of Community interest and conservational concern 4.4.6 Limiting predation on breeding colonies 4.4.7 Actions against Yellow-legged Gull 4.4.8 Maintenance of embankments and islets with conservation purposes 4.4.9 Avoiding disturbances to colonies 4.5 Sheets of habitat requirements 5) Legal aspects 5.1 Legislation at national level in the Mediterranean countries of Europe 5.2 Is salt production an agricultural or industrial activity? 5.3 The need of a European Directive for wetlands protection and the regulation of production (salt, fish, etc.) in wetlands 6) Costs for biodiversity conservation 6.1 The cost analysis in all possible cases of industrial production / artisanal production / environmental management / abandonment 6.1.1 Industrial production 6.1.2 Artisanal production 6.1.3 Environmental management 6.1.4 Total abandonment 6.1.5 Some examples of environmental management costs 6.2 Ecosystem services of saltworks 6.3 The analysis of possible revenue from traditional activities (salt) and alternative / innovative activities (fishing, fish farming, Artemia, halophilic bacteria and archaea, mud, brine, other types of salts, etc.) 6.3.1 Fishing and fish farming 6.3.2 Mud, brines and thermal waters 6.3.3 Biological products 6.3.4 Energy production 7) Guidelines and model of sustainable management 7.1 Role and importance of saltworks 7.2 Targets 7.3 Activities 7.3.1 General tips 7.3.2 Environmental management 7.3.3 Water management 7.3.4 Maintenance and creation of islets and of the safety conditions for the nesting birds 7.3.5 Management of the presence of Yellow-legged Gull 7.3.6 Conservation of conditions for habitats and plants 7.3.7 Conservation of conditions for fish and other aquatic animals 4 7.3.8 Give an added value to solar salt 7.3.9 Conservation of tradition and culture, also as an added value 7.3.10 Tourism 7.3.11 Other activities 7.3.12 Rules 7.3.13 Monitoring and research 7.3.14 General management 7.4 Conservation activities for habitats 7.5 Conservation activities for species 8) Bibliography 8.1 Documents provided by Partners 8.2 General bibliography (only documents referred to the text) Annex I. List of saltworks included in Natura 2000 network I.1 Methods I.2 Mediterranean and Black Sea marine saltworks included in the Natura 2000 network: remarks I.2.1 Romania I.2.2 Bulgaria I.2.3 Greece I.2.4 Croatia I.2.5 Slovenia I.2.6 Italy I.2.7 Malta I.2.8 France I.2.9 Spain I.3 List of Natura 2000 sites referred to the presence of active solar saltworks (salt production by natural evaporating) or abandoned ones. Annex II Nomenclatural notes 5 Introduction In the Mediterranean basin and the Black Sea region there are more than 170 saltworks in 18 countries. 90 are active saltworks, 75% are located in the northern and central Mediterranean countries: Spain, Greece, Italy, France and Portugal. Traditional salt pans and small salt pans are in continuous decline in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions from the 50s of the twentieth century. The saltworks are man-made environments obtained from lagoons, salt lakes or portions thereof, which most often artificially reproduce coastal ponds behind the dunes, natural elements nowadays very rarefied, which are cha- racteristic of the Mediterranean and Black Sea coasts. For this reason, many wild species, more or less speciali- zed, find here favourable habitats or replacement of lost natural habitats. The strategic importance of saltworks for the conservation of biological diversity is, in fact, tied to the drastic disappearance of natural coastal ecosystems that saltworks reproduce, due to increased human settlements along the coastline, or as a result of developments for tourism, industry or agriculture (Masero 2003; Lopez et al. 2009). “Saltscapes” are landscapes with long lasting salt-making activity, thus embedded with a blend of salt-related characteristics that marked them physically, ecolo- gically, economically, and culturally (Petanidou & Dalaka, 2009). In particular, the value of the saltworks as a habitat for waterbirds has been highlighted for a long time (Hoffmann (1964); Britton & Johnson (1987); Sadoul et al. (1998)). The ecological analysis of waterbirds in a saltwork (Casini et. al. 1992) has highlighted the considerable structural complexity of the bird community in all periods of the year and the tremendous ability of this environment to support breeding populations of some species related to salt or hyperhaline waters. The saltworks are also key sites for many halophytes, various invertebrates and euryhaline fish, both as a breeding and growth site. The management of saltworks would be more effective in terms of conservation if water levels and salinity are mo- delled on their natural course and the less the morphologies are simplified to increase productivity. On the other hand, there is an intrinsic potential, so far hardly been used in the artificial management of the saltwork, that is to be able to mitigate some of the effects of the natural hazards that sometimes hit the species sensitive to weather changes, water level variations or other factors, living in environments totally left to natural dynamics (exceptional drought or rainfall events, entry of predators, etc.). But it is a fact that in the active saltwork there can be conflicts between the trend of the water levels and the needs of wild bird species (Tucker & Heath 1994; Tucker & Evans 1997), many of which are protected by Directive 09/147/EU.