The quality of Balearic Sea water closes the II Marine Biodiversity Conference

The quality of Balearic Sea water, its causes and impacts, and solutions to its deterioration were the focus of the third session of the 2nd Conference on the Conservation of Marine Biodiversity in the Balearic Islands. This meeting closed this year's cycle, which began on 16 October with a conference on the effective protection of the Balearic Sea and continued on 23 October with a session dedicated to the conservation of marine mammals. 

Experts in marine biology, scientific institutions, and organisations came together over these three days to create a space to share knowledge and discuss best practices for monitoring and conserving marine biodiversity, both in the Balearic Islands and in other regions of the Mediterranean. The final meeting began with a welcome from the director of Marilles, Aniol Esteban, and the coordinator of the Balearic Sea Report (IMB), Raquel Vaquer. 

Juan Calvo, director of Aliança per l'Aigua, used Ibiza as an example to talk about the control and management of rainwater runoff. Next, the director of the environment department at the Balearic Centre for Applied Biology, Benjamí Reviriego, presented the monitoring programmes for controlling the quality of the Balearic Islands' coastal waters. Sergio Martino, head of the planning service of the government's Directorate-General for Water Resources, also spoke about the monitoring of coastal waters and their indicators. 

Joan Thomas, health protection technician at the Environmental Health Service of the Regional Ministry of Health, reviewed the evolution of bathing water quality in the Balearic Islands over the last ten10 years. Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies (IMEDEA) researcher Iris Hendriks explained the effects of wastewater discharges on Posidonia. 

The conference continued with a talk on the ecological regeneration of bays by Caterina Amengual, aquatic ecologist and senior water management technician at the government of the Balearic Islands. Finally, an attempt was made to answer the question ‘What can local organisations do to improve water quality?’ in a round table discussion with the participation of Ignasi Cifre, from Arrels Marines; Léa Leuzinger, from Salvem sa Badia de Portmany; and Laura Royo, from MedGardens. 

The morning concluded with a debate among the attendees, and continued in the afternoon with a closed-door meeting in which the experts drafted a document noting the conclusions of the meeting and management proposals. 

Organised by the Marilles Foundation and the Sa Nostra Foundation, the conference is funded by CaixaBank. Its conclusions will be submitted to the government of the Balearic Islands, as was done after the inaugural conference in 2024.