Mapping of Marine Protected Areas and their associated fishing activities in the Mediterranean and Black Seas

Marine protected areas have been established to manage and enhance marine ecosystems, fisheries, and wider human activities. They represent a core element of the European Union (EU) Biodiversity Strategy which aims to legally protect and effectively manage 30% of the EU marine waters by 2030.

Yet despite this ambitious target there remains a lack of clarity on how well protected the EU’s waters currently are - particularly in the Mediterranean and Black Sea region and what role MPAs play for fisheries.

This study, funded under the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF), provides an up-to-date overview of marine protected areas in the region. It improves the scientific knowledge base used to characterise the existing marine protected areas, providing the most comprehensive insights into the fishing activities present within marine protected areas and their surrounding areas to date; and increasing the understanding of the response of fishing activities to marine protected areas implementation.

Findings from this study show that we are falling short of the 30x30 conservation targets and that a higher level of protection is needed to guarantee conservation success. Fishing effort inside the marine protected areas was found to be generally lower than outside the marine protected areas, but that high efforts from towed gears was observed in the marine protected areas under the Natura2000 sites of community importance.

Vessel management system and automatic identification system data revealed that large-scale fishers show an effort concentration in areas relatively close to fully protected area boundaries suggesting a tendency to fish the line. In addition, results from participatory mapping revealed marine protected areas had displaced small-scale fishers.

Stakeholders’ perceptions indicated that the importance of marine protected areas for conservation purposes was recognised, yet their ecological potential and their management were not delivering what was expected or needed to garner support.

The present study provides actionable elements that can inform future actions in the Mediterranean and Black Sea region both in terms of:

1. research, by highlighting the need for improved data collection and data availability on small scale fisheries operations and catches, and on marine protected areas zoning, management and governance features, and 
2. management, by highlighting elements such as level of protection and engagement that should be strengthened, as they are key in determining successful fisheries management within and around marine protected areas.