Abundance and distribution of marine litter on the Mediterranean seabed_MEDITS_2021

Description

The information contained in this dataset corresponds to bottom marine litter (EMS D10) (monitoring programme BM3) collected during research campaigns to estimate the abundance and population structure of demersal and benthic species by bottom trawling surveys, following an internationally agreed protocol (MEDITS, Mediterranean International scientific bottom-trawl). Fishing was carried out with a bottom trawl designed for experimental fishing for scientific purposes and equipped with a 20 mm codend and with an estimated horizontal and vertical opening of 16 m and 2,7–3,2 m respectively. Bottom trawling was carried out during the day, between depths of 38 and 800 m and at a speed of about 3 knots and with a trawling time ranging from 30 to 60 minutes. The area comprising the data to assess descriptor 10 (marine litter) covers the Levantine-Balearic (LEBA) and Strait-Alboran (ESAL) demarcations in the western Mediterranean. Once on board, the marine litter obtained in the fisheries has been separated and classified into the different categories established in the campaign protocol: in different categories: glass, plastic, metal, fishing material, clinker, fabric, rubber and paper. For each category the total weight has been recorded and during the 2021 campaign it has also been possible to count the number of items in each valid fishing so that the abundance of bottom rubbish is reported according to the weight (Kg/km2) and the items (Items/Km2). It is a data set composed of linear elements, where each element represents a trawl fishery for the sampling of litter on the seabed. Each object has associated a series of alphanumeric variables such as the name of the fishing, the name of the campaign, the date and georeferencing, according to the GIS protocol of the Marine Strategies of Spain (EsMarEs) project. The development of this set of geographical information began in 2015, thanks to the MEDITS oceanographic campaigns. During the campaigns considered, a total of 1474 hauls were made, being considered valid in LEBA 1108 and ESAL 341, and making 158 hauls on average per campaign in LEBA and 57 in ESAL. The geographical information collected is stored in a spatial database. This work has been financed thanks to the project ‘Technical Scientific Advice for the Protection of the Marine Environment: Evaluation and Monitoring of Marine Strategies, Monitoring of Protected Marine Areas of State Competence (2018-2024)’. Marine Strategies are the marine environmental planning instrument created under Directive 2008/56/EC (as amended by Directive 2017/845) establishing a framework for Community action in the field of marine environmental policy (Marine Strategy Framework Directive), and have as their main objective the achievement of the Good Environmental Status (GES) of our seas. The 11 Good Environmental Status descriptors form the basis for the description and determination of good environmental status of the marine environment. They are established by the Directive in its Annex I. The marine assessment areas are located within the Marine Reporting Units (MRUs) defined in the framework of the Marine Strategies of Spain.

Resources

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Tags

  • muestreo
  • estrategias-marinas
  • basuras
  • demarcación-marina-leba
  • medits
  • demarcación-marina-esal
  • directive-2008-56-ec
  • plásticos

Topics

  • ENVI
  • TECH

Categories