ARCOPOL Project improves Natural Protected Areas

ARCOPOL Project improves Natural Protected Areas preparedness
from marine pollution
Garbiñe Ayensa1, Pedro Montero1, Silvia Allen-Perkins1, Antonio Novas2, Iván Rodríguez3, Sabela
Sampedro3 y Luis Navarro3
1Instituto
Tecnológico para el Control del Medio Marino de Galicia (INTECMAR), Spain; 2Servizo de Gardacostas de Galicia
(CMRM), Spain; 3Departamento de Biología Vegetal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Vigo, Spain
*E-mail: gayensa@intecmar.org
Abstract ARCOPOL Platform aims to further improve maritime safety in the Atlantic area and reinforce the protection of the coastal regions from maritime pollution through
the capitalization and upgrading of ARCOPOL and ARCOPOL plus outcomes. Specifically, ARCOPOL Platform is further transferring the knowledge acquired in previous pilot actions,
extending it to a number of municipalities and Natural Protected Areas. In this frame, Galicia is promoting the contingency plan for the Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial
National Park as a recommended management tool within international networks of marine protected areas and conventions. The contingency plan of this National Park contains
specific risk analysis for the area and specific protocols of response in case of marine incidents. This contingency plan will constitute the first specific plan for a National Park in the
Iberian Peninsula.
Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park
The Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park (GAIMTNP) is the first and only space in the Autonomous Community of Galicia with this status and
the second, as maritime-terrestrial, at national level together with Cabrera Archipelago, in Balearic Islands. These islands were declared National Park in 2002 as one
of the best samples of the Atlantic coast and seafloor ecosystems in Spain.
The National Park includes the archipelagos of Cortegada, Sálvora, Ons, Cíes and all the maritime area around them. It has a total area of 8333 hectares spread over
1,194.8 hectares of land and 7,285.2 marine hectares. This maritime space means the 86% of total protected area, which gives a clear idea of how important the
surrounding marine environment is on this area.
Administratively, the area of the national park belongs to 4 different municipalities: Vilagarcía de Arousa, Ribeira, Bueu and Vigo
The National Response System in Spain
The legal framework for accidental marine pollution response in Spain is the
National Response System published in January 2013. This system divides the
response into two different subsystems: the maritime and the coastal. In the
frame of each of those subsystems the Spanish government has developed a
National response Plan that cover all the Spanish affected area. Under the
National plans regional governments around the coast have developed their
own contingency plans. In the case of Galicia this plans is known as Plan
CAMGAL. In the lower level are the local plans that correspond to those plans
elaborated by the municipalities, the minimum administrative unit with
competence in the space ordering of the territory. Without invading
competences the regional contingency plan CAMGAL intends to introduce
mechanisms for common planner, integrating the coastal councils in a bigger
territorial perspective and delimiting areas of protection and common figures of
management to the 82 municipalities.
As the AGMTNP affected 4 different municipalities, its contingency plan will be
included as an annexe of the regional contingency plan CAMGAL.
SPANISH NATIONAL RESPONSE SYSTEM
MARITIME SYSTEM
COASTAL SYSTEM
MARITIME NATIONAL PLAN
COASTAL NATIONAL PLAN
INTERIOR PLANS
REGIONAL PLANS
Methodology
National Park
Plan
In order to elaborate the National Park contingency plan the
roadmap followed is:
- Compiling information for the Risk analysis
a) A protocol has been elaborated for data collection in
the field by stakeholders of the Park (Figure 1)
b) Analysis of the biodiversity data has been carried out
(Figure 2)
c) Spill drift simulations for risk analysis
- Risk analysis
- Analysis of scenarios
- Elaboration of the Contingency Plan
The contingency plan of the Galician Atlantic Islands
Maritime-Terrestrial National Park will constitute the
first specific plan for accidental marine pollution for
a National Park in the Iberian Peninsula.
Figure 2. Preliminary results of the
analysis of biodiversity in the
archipelagos of Cíes, Ons and Sálvora
Figure 1a. Field data collection by
stakeholders at National Park, Ons Inland
Figure 3. Position of the National Park
shown in the visor web of the
Regional contingency
Figure 1b. Sheets of the protocol for
data collection elaborated to be used
by the staff of the Park
LOCAL PLANS
Acknowledgments
We thank the invaluable support of the Directorate of the
Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park.