OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE “NATURPORTS” PROJECT

• Led by the Port of Vigo, the project involves the collaboration of the University of Vigo, as well as the University of Oviedo and the Marine Research Institute (IIM) of the CSIC.
• Its goal is to design and validate innovative ecological restoration strategies through the application and adaptation of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as a restoration practice for altered areas in maritime-port environments.

The Port Authority of Vigo hosted this morning the launch meeting of the project “NaturPorts – Integration of Nature-based Solutions in the Restoration of Port Ecosystems.”

The project, led by the Port of Vigo and supported once again by the University of Vigo, the University of Oviedo, and the Marine Research Institute (IIM) of the CSIC, seeks to integrate nature into port areas with the aim of achieving a balanced relationship between the socioeconomic and environmental aspects of coastal and marine ecosystems.

This project is carried out with the collaboration of the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, through the Pleamar Program, and is co-financed by the European Union through the EMFAF (European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund).

With a duration of 18 months, the project proposes the use of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as a practice for ecological restoration in areas impacted by urban and port activities that may show environmental degradation and/or loss of biodiversity. In this context, the use of NbS provides environmental, social and economic benefits by increasing the resilience of these ecosystems to human activities, as well as to those caused by climate change, among others.

The scheduled activities include the development of three specific NbS pilot projects: two in the Port of Vigo and one in Oviedo.

In Vigo, the IIM-CSIC will promote the restoration of seagrass meadows, and the University of Vigo will assess the degradation of NbS according to their exposure to different wave conditions.

The third pilot, carried out by the University of Oviedo, involves the use of NbS to promote the development of barnacle communities on port infrastructures. All three pilots will be monitored to evaluate their performance with respect to the specific objectives defined for each case.

In parallel to these pilots, a detailed diagnostic study of the different habitats present in the port environment will be carried out to optimize future restoration actions in the Port.

Additionally, NaturPorts includes a governance, results-transfer and outreach program aimed at fostering community participation and, in particular, raising awareness among stakeholders and the general public.

In this regard, the project includes the organization of hands-on workshop programs in Vigo and Oviedo for schoolchildren and university students. Outreach activities will also be carried out for fishermen’s associations and shellfish gatherers, as well as a sustainable fisheries event. The ultimate goal is to address the benefits of applying NbS in port environments and their contribution to economic, environmental and social sustainability in the fisheries sector.

The first action of the project took place on Friday, November 8, with the placement of four concrete structures in front of the “Nautilus” underwater observatory. Thanks to their channel- and crevice-based design, created by collaborators from the University of Vigo, these structures will facilitate the settlement of sessile organisms and provide shelter points for mollusks and crustaceans such as octopus and velvet crabs.

These structures are expected to reach their maximum level of organism settlement between four and six months, corresponding to spring 2025.