Abstract
Ecosystem-based management (EBM) addresses the fundamental need to account for cumulative impacts of human activities with the aim of sustainably delivering ecosystem services. The Saronikos Gulf, a large embayment of the Aegean Sea, provides a wide range of ecosystem services that are impacted by multiple human activities, deriving from the metropolitan area of Athens (situated at the northeast part of the Gulf). The anthropogenic impacts affect the status of several marine ecosystem components, e.g., seagrass meadows. Cymodocea nodosa meadows are only present at the most confined western part of the Gulf, whereas Posidonia oceanica meadows are mainly distributed in the inner and outer part of the Gulf. The aim of this study is to assess the cumulative impacts from multiple human activities on the seagrass meadows in the Gulf. The main results indicated that most impacted meadows are P. oceanica in the inner part of the Gulf, adjacent to the most urbanized coastal areas, and near port infrastructures. Land-based pollution, as well as physical damage and loss seem to be the main pressures exerted on the meadows. Understanding cumulative impacts is crucial for informing policy decisions under an EBM approach.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ascough JC II, Maier HR, Ravalico JK, Strudley MW (2008) Future research challenges for incorporation of uncertainty in environmental and ecological decision-making. Ecol Model 219(3-4):383–399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2008.07.015
Augier H, Boudouresque CF (1970) Végétation marine de l’ıle de Port-Cros (Parc National). V. La Baie de Port Man et le problème de la régression de l’herbier a’Posidonie. Bull Mus Hist Nat Marseille 30:145–164
Badalamenti F, Di Carlo G, D’Anna G, Gristina M, Toccaceli M (2006) Effects of dredging activities on population dynamics of Posidonia oceanica (L) Delile in the Mediterranean Sea: the case study of Capo Feto (SW Sicily, Italy). Hydrobiologia 555(1):253–261. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-005-1121-5
Ban NC, Alidina HM, Ardron JA (2010) Cumulative impact mapping: advances, relevance and limitations to marine management and conservation, using Canada’s Pacific waters as a case study. Mar Policy 34(5):876–886. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2010.01.010
Blanc JJ (1975) Recherches de sédimentologie appliquée au littoral rocheux de la Provence aménagement et protection. Centre Nation. Expl Océans Publication, Paris
Boudouresque CF (2004) The erosion of Mediterranean biodiversity. In: Rodríguez-Prieto C, Pardini G (eds) The Mediterranean Sea. An overview of its present state and plans for future protection. Universitat de Girona Publication, Girona, pp 53–112
Brodersen MM, Chalari N, Diktyopoulos C, Dogrammatzi A, Vassilopoulou V (2016) Preliminary comparative study of trammel net fisheries in the Saronikos Gulf. In: Proceedings of the 16th Pan-Hellenic Conference of Ichthyologists, Kavala, Greece, pp 129–132
Cheminée A, Feunteun E, Clerici S, Cousin B, Francour P (2014) Management of infralittoral habitats. Towards a Seascape Scale Approach. In: Musard O, Le Dû-blayo L, Francour P, Beurier J (eds) Underwater seascapes. from geographical to ecological perspectives, 1st edn. Springer International Publishing, Switzerland, pp 161–183
Clarke SM (1987) Seagrass-sediment dynamics in Holdfast Bay: summary. Safish 11:4–10
Claudet J, Frascetti S (2010) Human-driven impacts on marine habitats: a regional meta-analysis in the Mediterranean Sea. Biol Conserv 143(9):2195–2206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2010.06.004
Díaz-Almela E, Marbà N, Álvarez E, Santiago R, Holmer M, Grau A, Mirto S, Danovaro R, Petrou A, Argyrou M, Karakassis I, Duarte CM (2008) Benthic input rates predict seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) fish farm-induced decline. Mar Pollut Bull 56(7):1332–1342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2008.03.022
ELSTAT (2016) Revised estimated population (both sexes) on the 1st January for the years 2002-2016. Hellas Total-regions-departments. http://www.statistics.gr/el/statistics/-/publication/SPO18/-. Accessed 2016
European Commission (1992) Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora. Official Journal L206
European Commission (2008) Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 establishing a framework for Community actions in the field of marine environmental policy (Marine Strategy Framework Directive). Off J Eur Communities L164/19
European Commission (2014) Directive 2014/89/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 23 July 2014 establishing a framework for maritime spatial planning. Off J Eur Union L257/135
European Community (2000) Directive 2000/60/EC of the European parliament and of the council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for community action in the field of water policy. Off J Eur Communities L327
Gerakaris V, Panayotidis P, Vizzini S, Nicolaidou A, Economou-Amilli A (2017) Effectiveness of Posidonia oceanica biotic indices for assessing the ecological status of coastal waters in Saronikos Gulf (Aegean Sea, Eastern Mediterranean). Medit Mar Sci 18(1):161–178. 10.12681/mms.1893
Guidetti P (2001) Detecting environmental impacts on the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile: the use of reconstructive methods in combination with “beyond BACI” designs. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 260(1):27–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-0981(01)00245-3
Halpern BS, Selkoe KA, Micheli F, Kappel CV (2007) Evaluating and ranking the vulnerability of global marine ecosystems to anthropogenic threats. Conserv Biol 21(5):1301–1315. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2007.00752.x
Halpern BS, Walbridge S, Selkoe KA, Kappel CV, Micheli F, D’Agrosa C et al (2008) A global map of human impact on marine ecosystems. Science 319(5865):948–952. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1149345
Kavadas S, Maina I (2012) Methodology of analysis of vessel monitoring system data: estimation of fishing effort for the fleet of open sea fishery. In: 10th Panhellenic Symposium on Oceanography and Fisheries, Book of abstracts, Athens, p 164
Kavadas S, Damalas D, Georgakarakos S, Maravelias C, Tserpes G et al (2013) IMAS-Fish: Integrated Management System to support the sustainability of Greek fisheries resources. A multidisciplinary web-based database management system: implementation, capabilities, utilization and future prospects for fisheries stakeholder. Mediterr Mar Sci 14(1):109–118. 10.12681/mms.324
Kavadas S, Maina I, Damalas D, Dokos I, Pantazi M, Vassilopoulou V (2015) Multi-criteria decision analysis as a tool to extract fishing footprints: application to small scale fisheries and implications for management in the context of the maritime spatial planning directive. Mediterr Mar Sci 16(2):294–304. 10.12681/mms.1087
Kontoyiannis H (2010) Observations on the circulation of the Saronikos Gulf: a Mediterranean embayment sea border of Athens, Greece. J Geophys Res 115(C6):C06029. https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JC005026
Korpinen S, Andersen JH (2016) A global review of cumulative pressure and impact assessments in marine environments. Front Mar Sci 3:153. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2016.00153
Korpinen S, Meski L, Andersen A, Laamanen M (2012) Human pressures and their potential impact on the Baltic Sea ecosystem. Ecol Indic 15(1):105–114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.09.023
Lampou A, Simboura N, Drakopoulou P, Panayotidis P (2015) Application of the Land Use Simplified Index (LUSI) in the Hellenic coastal waters (Eastern Mediterranean) and cross-correlation with their integrative environmental status. In: Proceedings of the 11th Panhellenic Symposium on Oceanography and Fisheries, Mytilene, Greece, pp 729–732
Lardi P, Gerakaris V, Panayotidis P, Danielidis DB, Economou-Amilli A (2015) Study of the morphological and structural features of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa (Ucria) Ascherson in an embayment of the Aegean Sea (Saronikos Gulf, Greece). In: Proceedings of the 11th Panhellenic Symposium on Oceanography and Fisheries, Mytilene, Greece, pp 477–480
Maina I, Kavadas S, Katsanevakis S, Somarakis S, Tserpes G, Georgakarakos S (2016) A methodological approach to identify fishing grounds: a case study on Greek trawlers. Fish Res 183:326–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2016.06.021
Maxim L, Van der Sluijs JP (2011) Quality in environmental science for policy: assessing uncertainty as component of policy analysis. Environ Sci Policy 14(4):482–492. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2011.01.003
Meinesz A, Lefévre JR, Astier JM (1991) Impact of coastal development on the infra-littoral zone along the southeastern Mediterranean shore of continental France. Mar Pollut Bull 23:343–347. https://doi.org/10.1016/0025-326X(91)90698-R
Micheli F, Halpern BS, Walbridge S, Ciriaco S, Ferretti F, Fraschetti S, Lewison R, Nykjaer L, Rosenberg AA (2013) Cumulative human impacts on Mediterranean and Black Sea marine ecosystems: assessing current pressures and opportunities. PLoS One 8(12):e79889. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0079889
Ministry of Environment (2000) General Directorate of Environment, Directorate of Regional Planning, of the Ministry of Environment. Special framework for spatial planning and sustainable development of aquaculture. Athens, Greece (in Greek)
Orfanidis S, Papathanasiou V, Gounaris S, Theodosiou T (2010) Size distribution approaches for monitoring and conservation of coastal Cymodocea habitats. Aquat Conserv: Mar Freshwat Ecosyst 20(2):177–188. https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.1069
Panagiotopoulos I, Kapsimalis V, Hatzianestis I, Kanellopoulos T, Kyriakidou C (2010) Environmental status of the metropolitan river (Kifissos) of Athens, Greece. Environ Earth Sci 61(5):983–993. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-009-0417-6
Panayotidis P, Simboura N (1985) Distribution and phenology of Posidonia oceanica in Saronikos Gulf (Aegean Sea, Greece). In: Proceeding of the 2nd International Workshop on Posidonia beds, GIS Posidonie Publications, Marseille, France, pp 43–48
Panayotidis P, Orfanidis S, Montesanto B (2004) Use of low-budget monitoring of macroalgae to implement the European Water Framework Directive. J Appl Phycol 16(1):49–59. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JAPH.0000019114.47824.42
Panayotidis P, Karamfilov V, Berov D, Hiebaum G, Klayn S, Gerakaris V, Lardi P (2014) Seagrass presence and distribution as ecological status indicators: case studies in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea. In: 2nd Scientific Workshop of PERSEUS, Marakesh, p 36
Panayotidis P, Gana S, Karamfilov V, Zouljevic A, Micu D, Buia MC (2015) PERSEUS D2.6: response of benthic ecosystems under the influence of coastal pressures in different sub-regions of the South European seas (SES). PERSEUS IP project, Brussels
Panayotidis P, Gerakaris V, Drakopoulou P, Loukaidi V, Orfanidis S et al (2016) Atlas of seagrass distribution in the Greek seas, Athens
Pedersen Weidema B, Wesnaes MS (1996) Data quality management for life cycle inventories—an example of using data quality indicators. J Clean Prod 4(3–4):167–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0959-6526(96)00043-1
Peirano A, Bianchi CN (1997) Decline of the sea grass Posidonia oceanica in response to environmental disturbance: a simulation-like approach off Liguria (NW Mediterranean Sea). In: Hawkins LE, Hutchinson S, Jensen S, Williams AC, Sheader M (eds) Responses of marine organisms to their environment. University Southampton, UK, pp 87–95
Ralph PJ, Tomasko D, Moore K, Seddon S, Macinnis-Ng CMO (2006) Human impacts on seagrasses: eutrophication, sedimentation, and contamination. In: Larkum AWD, Orth RJ, Duarte CM (eds) Seagrasses: biology, ecology and conservation. Springer, the Netherlands, pp 567–593
Ruiz JM, Romero J (2003) Effects of disturbances caused by coastal constructions on spatial structure, growth dynamics and photosynthesis of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica. Mar Poll Bull 46(12):1523–1533. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2003.08.021
Selkoe KA, Halpern BS, Ebert CM, Franklin EC, Selig ER, Casey KS, Bruno J, Toonen RJ (2009) A map of human impacts to a “pristine” coral reef ecosystem, the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Coral Reefs 28(3):635–650. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-009-0490-z
Simboura N, Panayotidis P, Papathanassiou E (2005) A synthesis of the biological quality elements for the implementation of the European Water Framework Directive in the Mediterranean ecoregion: the case of Saronikos Gulf. Ecol Indic 5(3):253–266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2005.03.006
Simboura N, Zenetos A, Pancucci-Papadopoulou MA (2014) Benthic community indicators over a long period of monitoring (2000–2012) of the Saronikos Gulf, Greece, Eastern Mediterranean. Environ Monit Assess 186(6):3809–3821. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3659-z
Tsiamis K, Montesanto B, Panayotidis P, Katsaros C, Verlaque M (2010) Updated records and range expansion of alien marine macrophytes in Greece. Mediterr Mar Sci 11(1):61–79. 10.12681/mms.91
Tsiamis K, Panayotidis P, Salomidi M, Pavlidou A, Kleinteich J, Balanika K, Küpper FC (2013) Macroalgal community response to re-oligotrophication in Saronikos Gulf. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 472:73–85. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10060
Funding
This research was funded by the Marine Environmental targets linked to Regional Management schemes based on Indicators Developed for the Mediterranean (MERMAID) project (ERANET 12SEAS-12-C1).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Thomas Hein
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brodersen, M.M., Pantazi, M., Kokkali, A. et al. Cumulative impacts from multiple human activities on seagrass meadows in eastern Mediterranean waters: the case of Saronikos Gulf (Aegean Sea, Greece). Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 26809–26822 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0848-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0848-7