Protection of marine areas (1)

According to your report ‘Divers calls for better enforcement protection measures at dive sites’ (August 15), Nature Trust (Malta) expressed its disappointment that the area surrounding Ċirkewwa and Comino, a popular dive site with a very rich Posidonia oceanica community, has been excluded ­protection as a designated Marine Protected Area.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (Mepa) can confirm that the sea around Comino, ­L-Aħrax Point and the eastern side of Ċirkewwa has been fully included in one of the four Marine Protected Areas, as also indicated in the attached map extracted from Government Notice 851 of 2010. These sites are in fact part of the largest marine protected area which has been designated, which spans an area of over 15,000 hectares across the north-easterb area of Malta.

The newly designated sites were primarily identified by the authority because they provide protection for over 80 per cent of Posidonia beds (mergħat tal-alka) found in Malta. In the Mediterranean, this habitat provides both food and shelter for a number of marine species, acts as a carbon sink and protects beaches from sand depletion.

Mepa would also like to reiterate that protecting marine areas does not mean that all activities, including fishing, will automatically be prohibited. Rather, activities carried out within these areas will have to be assessed in terms of the likelihood and significance of their impact on the biodiversity for which the site was protected.

For this very reason Mepa will be working on the development and implementation of management plans which will effectively allow for the sustainable use of natural resources in these areas with the full involvement of all stakeholders.