Summary:
Ports are essential allies for the development and growth of the Blue Economy as they are the physical interface where all industries and sectors related to the oceans, seas and coasts can converge, both those based in the marine environment (maritime transport, fishing, energy generation) and those based on land (ports, shipyards, aquaculture on land, seaweed production, coastal tourism).
The Port Authority of the Algeciras Bay, aware of the numerous problems facing the marine environment and, fundamentally, those related to the loss of biodiversity, the appearance of invasive species on the coast and the loss of environmental quality in the waters of the port and the Bay, launched the challenge entitled “Preserving the marine ecosystem and biodiversity while guaranteeing the compatibility of port activity in the PBA“; with the aim of identifying and implementing innovative solutions for the conservation and protection of biodiversity, the preservation of the environmental quality of the port waters and the Bay or to compensate for human activity by generating a net effect, among others.
At the same time, the Spanish State Secretariat for the Environment (SEMA), the highest body of the current Ministry for Ecological Transition responsible for the protection of the natural environment, biodiversity, conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, habitats and natural ecosystems in the terrestrial and marine environment, also establishes a series of requirements that ports must comply with in order to achieve these objectives. Specifically, with regard to the development of port infrastructure work projects, since they require the preparation of environmental monitoring plans and the monitoring of cetacean populations, both during and after the execution of the actions.
Given this situation, and given the reception of proposals and initiatives to the challenge posed, the APBA has decided to invest in the implementation of the pilot project “Underwater noise monitoring system and cetacean tracking” which envisages the adoption of a digital platform that, on the one hand, allows it to periodically monitor the underwater noise generated by port activity, including ships and maintenance work and infrastructure expansion, and, on the other hand, to periodically assess the impact of this noise on the marine fauna in the area, both during the implementation phase and later in operation.
The project will be developed by the start-up Sinay, a French company specialised in the design of artificial intelligence digital solutions for the analysis, monitoring and prediction of complex maritime data in the fields of sustainability and maritime transport.
The scope of the pilot project consists of the installation, configuration and start-up of the Sinay HUB platform in the facilities of the Port of Algeciras Bay, as well as in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar, enabling (1) the continuous monitoring and evaluation of the underwater noise generated by ships and work carried out in the port area, (2) continuous monitoring of the distribution of cetacean populations in the waters around the Bay and the Strait of Gibraltar, by incorporating data from existing observations and platforms (OBIS) and the use of habitat models and (3) obtaining acoustic risk maps with indicators and metrics of the impact of port activity on marine biodiversity.
In addition, this tool will allow the automatic generation of reports with the data required by the competent authorities in environmental matters.
Expected results:
- Develop a digital tool for active monitoring of underwater noise and cetacean populations for a more efficient monitoring and management.
- Improve the conservation of marine biodiversity in the waters of Algeciras Bay.
- Reduce the impact of port and maritime activity on the marine environment.
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