International Day of the Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean is a sea of wonders, history, culture and beauty to be protected and enhanced: a heritage that is celebrated on July 8 through the International Day that bears its name. With the MER (Marine Ecosystem Restoration) Project of the PNRR, ISPRA is building a laboratory to map, restore and protect one of the richest - and most fragile - marine ecosystems on our planet with the aim of safeguarding its biodiversity and handing it over to future generations. The MER Project, the largest project on the sea within the "National Recovery and Resilience Plan", sees the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security as the titular administration and ISPRA as the sole implementing body. The project includes 37 lines of activity, to be carried out by June 30, 2026, throughout the national territory divided into three pillars: the restoration and protection of the seabed, the strengthening of marine and coastal observation systems and the mapping of coastal and marine habitats of conservation interest.
- https://www.isprambiente.gov.it/en/news/international-day-of-the-mediterranean-sea
- International Day of the Mediterranean Sea
- 2025-07-08T00:00:00+02:00
- 2025-07-08T23:59:59+02:00
- The Mediterranean is a sea of wonders, history, culture and beauty to be protected and enhanced: a heritage that is celebrated on July 8 through the International Day that bears its name. With the MER (Marine Ecosystem Restoration) Project of the PNRR, ISPRA is building a laboratory to map, restore and protect one of the richest - and most fragile - marine ecosystems on our planet with the aim of safeguarding its biodiversity and handing it over to future generations. The MER Project, the largest project on the sea within the "National Recovery and Resilience Plan", sees the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security as the titular administration and ISPRA as the sole implementing body. The project includes 37 lines of activity, to be carried out by June 30, 2026, throughout the national territory divided into three pillars: the restoration and protection of the seabed, the strengthening of marine and coastal observation systems and the mapping of coastal and marine habitats of conservation interest.
- What evidence
- When Jul 08, 2025 (Europe/Berlin / UTC200)
-
Add event to calendar
iCal
Thanks to the “GhostNets” operation, conducted by ISPRA along the Sicilian coast, between Augusta and Syracuse, 60,000 square meters of seabed were inspected, over 30 ghost nets up to 260 meters long (approximately equal to a 100-story skyscraper) were recovered at a depth of 40-60 meters and hundreds of square meters of seabed were finally freed.
ISPRA has successfully completed the first oceanographic campaign dedicated to the large-scale mapping of 79 underwater mountains located beyond 12 miles from the Italian coast at a depth between 150 and 2000 meters. On board an oceanographic vessel, the ISPRA team, ploughing the Strait of Sicily, documented eleven underwater mountains and banks, including Alfil-Linosa III, Avventura-Pantelleria-Talbot, Bannock, Bouri, Euridice, Madrepore, Pantelleria Centrale, Pinne and Urania, Cimotoe and Empedocle, most of which have never been explored and studied before, collecting crucial data for the conservation of biodiversity and the assessment of geological risks.
On May 29, the Institute presented the "Sea Sentinel", as it was nicknamed, a mobile unit (UMRO) that represents a technological vanguard for coastal marine monitoring. Thanks to its technical equipment and operational capacity in the field, the UMRO allows monitoring the state of the sea, the field of surface currents and the bathymetry of the coastal seabed using a Radar and guarantees the possibility of organizing ad hoc monitoring campaigns in coastal areas of particular interest along the entire peninsula.
On July 15, at the Chamber of Deputies, ISPRA will present the new major oceanographic vessel: not only a new research infrastructure, but the concrete symbol of a collective commitment to the sea, to science, to future generations. During the event, a preview of the rendering of the vessel will be shown, designed to explore the seabed up to 4,000 meters deep, study its currents, marine and coastal marine habitats such as Posidonia meadows and underwater mountains that preserve precious and threatened biodiversity. On board, cutting-edge technological equipment: autonomous and remotely controlled vehicles (AUV and ROV), sonar and acoustic systems capable of producing very high-resolution and high-quality data also thanks to the silence and sustainability of the propulsion technologies used