Right here, right now
The Mediterranean – exploited and vurnerable
Over 40% of the coast is completely developed with a projection of 50% by 2025150 million people live on the coastal belt which receives the majority of the 200 million international tourists that every year visit the Mediterranean.
In Libya and Greece, more than 80% of their entire national population lives in coastal regions
Six countries already exploit over 50% and in some country or regions, over 100% of their renewable water resources
50% of wetland habitats have been lost, with a peak of 97% in the Middle East.
The Mediterranean is included by FAO among the fully or over exploited fisheries of the world.
Over 50% of wastewaters flow to the sea untreated
In 2004, Mediterranean protected areas only account for 5.5% of total land, while the world figure is at 12.7%.
Protected areas cover a mere 3% of the coastline, and less than 1% of the marine area
What does the future hold if we carry on with business as usual?
Six main trends are expected to drive most of the biodiversity loss over the next couple of decades:
1. Loss of land to urban expansion and tourism development, including secondary houses and commercial buildings2. Loss of land to transport infrastructures, including roads, ports, airports, fast railways, energy transport lines
3. Land degradation caused by deforestation and overgrazing (N. Africa)
4. Loss of freshwater habitats to dams for hydropower and irrigation and water abstraction/diversion for agriculture, urban and tourism use
5. Disruption of marine ecosystems and potential collapse of stocks, caused by overexploitation of biological resources
6. Climate change exacerbating several of these trends
