Genova, Italy
City population: 588904
Duration: 2016 – ongoing
Implementation status: Ongoing
Scale: Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Project area: unknown
Type of area: Protected Area, Natural Heritage Area/Untouched nature
Last updated: October 2021

The project aims to reintroduce Patella ferruginea in the three Protected Marine Areas (AMP) (Portofino, Bergeggi and Cinque Terre), where the causes of extinction have been eliminated and an adequate level of protection is ensured (1). The project expects to achieve the following results: Biodiversity recovery and restoration of ribbed Mediterranean limpet by re-establishing a local population starting with 100 specimens; Reproduction and production of juveniles (some 6 000 larvae per year) to be introduced to the target areas for restocking; Full recovery and new population development of ribbed Mediterranean limpet in the target area; Restoration of the population translocated from Tavolara by introducing juveniles from controlled reproduction; and Strengthened territorial promotion and reinforcement of the “clean sea” message" (4).

Limpet
http://www.re-lifeproject.eu/e-partita-la-campagna-estiva-di-avvistamento-di-patella-ferruginea/

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Blue infrastructure
  • Coastlines

Key challenges

  • Water management (SDG 6)
  • Improvements to water quality
  • Coastal resilience and marine protection (SDG 14)
  • Coastal protection / hazard mitigation
  • Marine and coastal biodiversity protection
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Habitat and biodiversity restoration
  • Habitat and biodiversity conservation
  • Green space creation and/or management
  • Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
  • Environmental and climate justice
  • Economic development and employment (SDG 8)
  • Tourism support
  • Cultural heritage and cultural diversity
  • Preservation of natural heritage

Focus

Coastal landscape management or protection, Ecological restoration of ecosystems, Improved governance of green or blue areas, Monitoring and maintenance of habitats and/or biodiversity

Project objectives

"The general objective of the RE.LIFE project is to reintroduce the ribbed Mediterranean limpet to the Portofino MPA and to other Ligurian MPAs (Bergeggi and Cinque Terre) included in four Natura 2000 network sites, as well as to raise awareness of the importance of conserving this species" (4).

Implementation activities

A team of scientists from the Universities of Genoa and Sassari and Tavolara-Punta Coda Cavallo Camp has conducted an environmental monitoring of the islands of Tavolara, Molara and Molarotto. The abundances of P. ferruginea was evaluated in an area of over 2 km of coast and an ecological quality assessment has been carried out in an area of 5 km. This was done considering the composition of superficial algal populations through the CARLIT index. At the end of the monitoring campaign, the first transport experiment of four P. ferruginea specimens was carried out at the CNR-IBF marine laboratory in Camogli, where the acclimatization tanks were set up before insertion into zone A of the AMP of Portofino. The specimens were taken from the Molarotto Island, based on the results of a genetic study and census conducted by the Department of Natural and Territorial Sciences at the University of Sassari in 2017 (1).

Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities

Biodiversity conservation:

  • Protect and enhance urban habitats
  • Preserve and strengthen existing habitats and ecosystems
  • Promote environmentally-sound development in and around protected areas
  • Create new habitats
  • Reduce negative impacts and avoid the alteration/damage of ecosystem
  • Protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect native species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect endangered species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect valued species
  • Means for conservation governance
  • Manage biological resources for conservation and sustainable use
  • Create and use scientific knowledge for conservation

Biodiversity restoration:

  • Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
  • Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
  • Restore native species
  • Restore valued species
  • Restore endangered species
  • Restore ecological connectivity

Main beneficiaries

  • Local government/Municipality
  • Researchers/University
  • Other

Governance

Management set-up

  • Co-governance with government and non-government actors

Type of initiating organisation

  • Local government/municipality

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Dissemination of information and education

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

Consorzio di gestione dell'Area Marina Protetta di Portofino is the coordinator of the project. Other project partners are: Consorzio di Gestione dell’Area Marina Protetta di Tavolara – Punta Coda Cavallo, Italy Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre, Italy Università degli Studi di Genova, Italy Costa Edutainment S.P.A., Italy Softeco Sismat srl, Italy Comune di Bergeggi, Italy (4). More than half of the project is through EU funding (5).

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? Yes ("The species is included in Annex II of the SPAMI Convention, along with Appendix 2 of the Bern Convention and Annex IV of the Habitats Directive. Furthermore, the ribbed Mediterranean limpet is a target species for evaluating good marine environmental status (GES) in line with the Italian Marine Strategy and EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Nature protection and Biodiversity COM(2011) 244 final “Our life insurance, our natural capital: an EU biodiversity strategy to 2020 ... Marine environment and Coasts Directive 2008/56 - Framework for community action in the field of marine environmental policy (M ... Nature protection and Biodiversity Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (01.06.1982) Directive 92/43 - Conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora- Habitats Directive" (4).)
... a national policy or strategy? Yes (Since it is an endemic and rare species subject to various antropic pressures, it has been proposed by the Italian Marine Strategy (Framework Directive 2008/56 / EC on the Marine Strategy adopted in Italy by Legislative Decree No 190 of 13 October 2010) as one of the valid elements for defining the "good environmental state" (Ges) of a particular area (3).)
... a local policy or strategy? Unknown

Financing

Total cost

€500,000 - €2,000,000

Source(s) of funding

  • EU funds
  • Public local authority budget

Type of funding

  • Earmarked public budget
  • Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)

Non-financial contribution

Unknown

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Water management and blue areas
  • Improved water quality
  • Green space and habitat
  • Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
  • Reduced biodiversity loss
  • Increased number of species present
  • Increased protection of threatened species
  • Increased ecological connectivity across regeneration sites and scales

Economic impacts

  • Unknown

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Cultural heritage and sense of place
  • Increased awareness of flora and fauna as culturally and historically meaningful
  • Increased appreciation for natural spaces
  • Education
  • Increased support for education and scientific research
  • Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
  • Increased awareness of NBS and their benefits

Type of reported impacts

No impacts reported

Presence of formal monitoring system

Yes

Presence of indicators used in reporting

Yes

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

Yes

References

1. Genova Post (2017), Arrivati in Liguria i primi esemplari di Patella ferruginea, Available at Source link, (Accessed 3-9-2020)

2. Levante News (2017), Liguria/ Progetto ReLife patella ferruginea: arrivati i primi esemplari, Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)

3. Levante News (2017), Camogli: vasche per ambientare le patelle sarde, Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)

4. Source link (2016), Source link - Re-establishment of the Ribbed Limpet (Patella ferruginea) in Ligurian MPAs by Restocking and Controlled Reproduction, Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)

5.Facebook page of the project (no date), Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)

6. Re-Life (2017), Project website, Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)

7. MedMPAnet Project (2015), A GUIDE ON ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING OF ROCKY SEABEDS IN

MEDITERRANEAN MARINE PROTECTED AREAS AND SURROUNDING ZONES, Available at Source link (Accessed 3-9-2020)