Protecting the oceans and coasts of Spain
© WW-Spain
This map identifies locations that are representative of Spain's marine wealth that must legally be protected as rapidly as possible.
More information
© WWF-Spain
This map identifies areas around the Canary Islands that WWF-Spain is seeking to protect.
Network of Protected Marine Areas in Spain
WWF-Spain has developed a pioneering proposal to create a Representative Network of Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in Spain to conserve important marine landscapes.With this initiative, WWF-Spain hopes to see a viable network of well managed MPAs that cover at least a ten percent surface of our seas, established by 2020.
Experts have chosen 20 threatened places that are representative of Spain's marine wealth that must legally be protected as rapidly as possible.
Under Spanish waters are rich biological communities, which the WWF-Spain proposal aims to protect. These include prairies of oceanic Posidonia and Sebadales, forests of Gorgonias, coralígenos, caves, bottoms of Maërl, forests of Atlantic laminarias or banks of deep corals.
Less than 1% of marine surface area protected
Currently, Spain’s Marine Protected Areas in the Mediterranean are less than one percent of the total of the marine surface. Spain has only two Marine-Terrestrial National Parks, ten Marine Fishery Reserves and 38 other marine areas with some type of protection under regional governments.