Programme: Interreg Italy-Croatia 2021-2027
Project title: UNDerwatER Soundscape beyond Ais
Acronym: UNDERSEA
Duration: 01/02/2024 – 31/07/2026
Project budget: € 2.219.960,00
ISMAR budget: € 610.000,00
Web site: n.a.
Summary:
UNDERSEA aims to promote sustainable growth in the Adriatic Sea region by enhancing transboundary system for monitoring, assessment and mitigation of underwater noise pollution in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Underwater pollution generated by human activities such as shipping, tourism, fishing, and resource exploitation has potentially alarming adverse effects on the marine environment as underwater noise levels have doubled in EU waters and particularly in the Adriatic between 2014 and 2019.
UNDERSEA will implement the monitoring network for underwater sound measurements that will cover the entire Adriatic Sea by extending the results of the SOUNDSCAPE project. The project will conduct dedicated experiments to assess noise levels produced by boats engaged in tourism and local fisheries, using satellite data to define the geographic distribution of small boats, developing tools to quantify their contribution to underwater sound pollution.
The results of the entire project will be consolidated to create new tools for managing the sea, coastal environment and natural resources across borders.
Contact person in ISMAR: fantina.madricardo@cnr.it
Partnership:
1. National Research Council (Italy)
2. Blue World Institute of Marine Research and Conservation (Croatia)
3. Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (Croatia)
4. Regional Environmental Protection Agency of Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy)
5. Cetacea Foundation (Italy)
6. Apulian Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Protection (Italy)
7. Public Institution for the Management of Protected Natural Areas of Dubrovnik-Neretva County (Croatia)
8. Croatian Natural History Museum (Croatia)
