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On Saturday, divers from ASEAN and the Spanish Institute of Oceanography to a survey conducted in front of the Sierra de La Fausilla (Cartagena) to assess the situation of the submarine in the area, with great satisfaction discovered a new plot of Posidonia oceanica, priority habitat for protection under the Habitats Directive of the European Union.

The official maps of the Autonomous Community does not reflect the existence of this habitat between Cartagena and Portman.

This discovery adds to those made last June by ANSE divers in the area between Mancebo and Morra Peña Alta, on the coast of the Sierra de La Fausilla "The Gorguel, when evaluating the underwater communities of the area could be affected by the possible construction of the so-called Macropuerto Gorguel.

Then as now, divers have found numerous traces from the passage of funds trawl between 12 and 20 m away.

Bottom trawling is prohibited in depths less than 50 m.

However, it is known in the local fishing industry that a few small vessels in the ports of Cartagena and Mazarrón frequently practiced mainly trawling at depths of less than authorized.

Apparently, one of the areas where these violations occur most frequently is, precisely, the coast near the Sierra de La Fausilla-tailings, probably due to the abundance of commercially important fish, like mullet.

Divers of the IEO and ASEAN have been able to verify the destruction of a significant part of the Posidonia oceanica, which had to be much larger than it is today.

ORDER APA/3660/2003 of 22 December, which is regulated in Spain, the system of fishing vessel monitoring satellite and establishing the regulatory basis of support for the acquisition and installation of systems location of fishing vessels, determined that all vessels over 15 meters must have this device as of January 1, 2005.

ANSE believes that in the case of the coastline of the Region of Murcia, the requirement that at least all trawlers have this tracking device is also justified by the existence of different sites of Community Importance (SCI) and Reserve Pesquera Cabo de Palos-Islas ants on which it is necessary to implement management measures that include adequate control of illegal fishing, including trawling in which funds less than 50 m is particularly important.

For this reason, and taking into account the difficulty of inspection services of the Autonomous Region have to locate this type of vessel, ASEAN has asked the Autonomous Community of Murcia, and as occurs in areas Alboran and Ibiza, to adopt a specific rule requiring all trawlers in the region, regardless of their length, to place the tracking device called "blue box."

If necessary, aid should be approved, as was done with the rest of the fleet, to provide the fishermen to install the device without excessive cost.

The elimination of this illegal activity will result in better conservation of underwater ecosystems, which ultimately benefit the fishing industry itself.

Moreover, the Association considers it essential that the Autonomous Region made a new update to the mapping of the seabed within 50 m of depth in the littoral of the Sierra de La Fausilla, since the appearance of different formations of Posidonia oceanica increase the high natural values of this coastal stretch, described as SCI (Site of Community Importance) and SPA (Special Protection Area for birds), the area emerged.

Source: ANSE / Fotografía: J.M. Ruíz/ANSE.