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Jan 17
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Marine Environment Observation

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The Coastal Observatory of the Xunta de Galicia (Regional Government) improves its ocean-meteorologic stations network with a new observation platform in the Rande bridge

  • The new infrastructure will incorporate sensors and technological solutions developed within the Galician Marine Sciences Programme by the IEO-CSIC, IIM-CSIC and the University of Vigo
  • The station will be fully operational before the summer, joining the other five stations in A Garda, Cíes, Muros, Ribeira and Cortegada

CETMAR has installed a new platform for the observation of the marine environment in one of the concrete dolphins of the Rande bridge, in the Ría de Vigo, with the collaboration of the Instituto Tecnolóxico para o Control do Medio Mariño-Intecmar and the Galician Marine Sciences Programme.

This infrastructure will improve the monitoring of biogeochemical parameters of the Galician ocean-meteorological stations network of the Coastal Observatory of the Xunta de Galicia.  Up to now it was focused on monitoring classical parameters such as wind, sea temperature or salinity. The network is made up by six automatic platforms, like the A Garda, Cíes, Muros and Ribeira buoys, the Rande station and the Cortegada platform.

The new structure will be the basis to integrate the advances in the observation of marine environment obtained in the Galician Marine Sciences Program. In fact, this area constitutes one of the main pillars. The joint effort of the entities is allowing the development of technologies and methodologies to obtain better data on the marine environment efficiently.

Installed in one of the concrete dolphins of the Rande bridge, the station will enable the monitoring of biogeochemical variables by integrating different sensors and technologies whose prototype is already operational in Dávila Marina in Bouzas, in the Port of Vigo. They will measure continuously some essential oceanographic variables such as temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen in the water, pH, fluorescence, or radon concentration, through the collection of data throughout the water column.

With the collaboration of the Coastal Observatory of the Xunta de Galicia, and particularly Intecmar, CETMAR enables this new infrastructure to install measuring equipment continuously and autonomously. Developed with an open access by different Galician research organizations, the maintenance is assumed by CETMAR just like the other stations.

The work of CETMAR, under the Regional Department of Maritime Affairs, is part of the collaboration agreement signed in 2021 between the abovementioned organism and the Regional Department for the Environment and Climate Change. This department coordinates the work developed since 2008 by MeteoGalicia, Intecmar and CETMAR, enabling the activity of the Coastal Observatory of the Xunta de Galicia and the contribution to an efficient management of extreme events, resilience to climate change and sustainable management of marine resources.

The Coastal Observatory of the Xunta de Galicia not only provides data, but also quality and useful predictions for research and sustainable management of the marine environment.  It also supplies the necessary information for emergency management, thanks to the daily work of MeteoGalicia and Intecmar. Regarding maritime rescue, it is an indispensable support for Gardacostas de Galicia (regional coastguard service) and Salvamento Marítimo (national maritime rescue), and a key piece to execute the territorial contingency plan for accidental marine pollution in Galicia (Camgal).

The information from the sea obtained by the observatory’s infrastructures facilitates the sustainable development of the productive sectors, offering information on the salinity decrease and the temperature increase, supporting studies on the production areas and generating value-added products for the general population (information on beaches, ports, etc.) or for specific sectors of the blue economy.

About the Galician Marine Sciences Programme

The Galician Marine Sciences Programme is a comprehensive and multidisciplinary scientific initiative to address the challenges of global change and is committed to the conservation and sustainable management of marine ecosystems in Galicia. It is part of the complementary science plans of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities included in the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR-C17.I1). It is financed through the Xunta de Galicia with Next Generation EU funds and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund of the European Union.

Dec 20
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#CienciasMariñasGal

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The Cidade da Cultura brings together 200 experts in a meeting of the marine sector with scientists from the Galician marine science programme

  • The conference, inaugurated by the Head of the Regional Department for Marine Issues, Mr. Alfonso Villares, brought together researchers and representatives of the regional administration, productive sectors and organisations from the marine field
  • The meeting served to evaluate the progress in observation and monitoring of the marine environment, sustainable aquaculture and social and economic transformation, as well as to debate the challenges of marine science and research in Galicia

The Galician Marine Science Programme held today the fifth assembly titled “Advances facing the identified challenges and meeting with the marine sectors”, brought together 200 experts at the Cidade da Cultura in Santiago de Compostela. It offered a space for dialogue and collaboration around the needs and challenges of Galicia’s marine sector aimed at being tackled by research.

The meeting was inaugurated by the Head of the Regional Department for Marine Issues, Mr. Alfonso Villares, accompanied by Francisco Saborido, scientific coordinator of the Programme and researcher at the Marine Research Institute-CSIC. Mr. Villares highlighted and thanked the work of the scientific community who enable the advances of the Galician Marine Science Programme. He referred to the programme as ‘an integrated model to manage the flow of scientific knowledge’ and ‘completely adapted to the environmental, socio-cultural, economic and institutional context of Galicia’.

He added: “From the Regional Department for Marine Issues we are proud of this Programme, key for the understanding of coastal and marine ecosystems and the improved management of their relationship with human activities”. A Programme that he defined as “pioneering and successful, result of the tenacity and perseverance of great professionals”.

Further details of the meeting

All the institutions that take part in the programme participated in the meeting, organised by IIM-CSIC, CETMAR and CIM (University of Vigo). Some of the institutions included are the Galician universities, the Galician Supercomputing Centre (Cesga) as well as the Galician Technological Institute for the Control of the Marine Environment (Intecmar), the Centre for Marine Research (CIMA) and the Galician Institute for Aquaculture Training (Igafa), dependent on the Regional Department for Marine Issues.

The event dealt with three topic blocks reflecting the importance of innovations in key areas, such as marine observation and monitoring, sustainable use of resources and resilience of coastal ecosystems. There were presented new observation platforms and technologies for a better knowledge of the state of the marine environment, its alterations and their impact, as well as advances for an increased knowledge on the state of resources and technologies to improve aquaculture, shellfish and fisheries production.

A virtual marine laboratory and extreme event simulators were some of the innovative initiatives presented. Additionally, there were shown some outstanding advances in the digitization of value chains in the fisheries sector, in the application of genomic tools for the improvement of aquaculture and shellfish farming production, and advances in the management and sustainable supply of mollusc’s seed.

Dec 18
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Padroado CETMAR

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CETMAR pecha o ano con 52 proxectos e servizos en marcha e un presuposto para 2025 que supera os 4,5 millóns de euros

  • O Padroado da Fundación aprobou hoxe o plan de actuación e o orzamento do centro para 2025 nunha reunión ordinaria presidida polo conselleiro do Mar, Alfonso Villares
  • O Centro Tecnolóxico do Mar pecha un exercicio no que traballou en mais de sesenta accións relacionadas coa gobernanza mariña, a xestión de recursos a observación mariña, a formación ou a cooperación internacional, entre outros ámbitos

O Padroado do Centro Tecnolóxico do Mar-Fundación CETMAR reuniuse esta mañá na sede da institución en Vigo nun encontro presidido polo conselleiro do Mar, Alfonso Villares, como vicepresidente do mesmo, e no que a súa directora-xerente, Rosa Chapela, fixo balance do exercicio 2024 e presentou o plan de actuación e o presuposto para 2025, que supera os 4,5 millóns de euros.

A institución dependente da Consellería do Mar traballa na actualidade en 52 proxectos e servizos, a maioría de ámbito internacional, relacionados coa gobernanza mariña, a loita contra a contaminación no mar, a xestión dos recursos mariños, a formación, a cooperación internacional ou a observación mariña e a promoción e transferencia de tecnoloxía, entre outros campos de actividade.

A directora-xerente do Cetmar deu conta aos membros do Padroado das accións levadas a cabo no exercicio 2024, cando os técnicos da institución galega estiveron involucrados nun total de 62 proxectos e servizos que na súa maioría continuarán ao longo do ano 2025. Ademais de dar continuidade a este traballos, a Fundación galega está pendente da resolución de oito novas propostas presentadas a diferentes convocatorias nos últimos meses.

O Centro Tecnolóxico do Mar mantén a súa liña de traballo en torno á loita contra a contaminación mariña en proxectos como Free-Litter AT, centrado na prevención, monitorización e redución do lixo mariño, ou BlueWWater, para o tratamento, control e redución de microplásticos e contaminantes emerxentes.

No ámbito da gobernanza mariña, Cetmar traballa en diferentes proxectos e servizos relacionados coa ordenación espacial mariña -Remap-MSP, POEM- e en diferentes tarefas de apoio aos Grupos de Coordinación Rexional (RCGs) por encargo da Comisión Europea, así como aos Grupos de Acción Local do Sector Pesqueiro galego, nun servizo da Consellería do Mar.

A maioría dos proxectos e servizos relacionados coa xestión de recursos mariños nos que o Centro traballou neste ano proseguirán no 2025, como é o caso de Transformar, que busca solucións para a adaptación ao cambio climático, no caso de Galicia, nos sectores do mexillón e do marisqueo a pe, ou Apromex, no que apoia ao CIMA no análise das poboacións de semente de mexillón.

Tamén neste ámbito, Cetmar desenvolve xunto a dous grandes consorcios europeos proxectos para minimizar e eliminar a captura accidental de especies prioritarias en perigo de extinción, ameazadas e protexidas (LIFE Cibbrina) e reducir as capturas incidentais de megafauna mariña -aves, tartarugas, eslamobranquios e cetáceos-.

O Centro Tecnolóxico do Mar proseguirá no 2025 cos diferentes traballos relacionados co mantemento da rede de observación do Observatorio Costeiro da Xunta de Galicia, así como coa análise de datos a través da súa implicación na Rede Europea de Observación e Datos Mariños (Emodnet), no Observatorio Europeo para os Produtos da Pesca e Acuicultura (Eumofa) ou no Observatorio Europeo da Economía Azul.

Dec 04
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Exchange of knowledges

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The Winter School on emerging pollutants and disinfection by-products organized by the University of Porto

The Technology Centre of the Sea- CETMAR participated this week in the Winter School on ‘Emerging Contaminants (CECs) and Disinfection By-products (DBPs): Occurrence, Impact and Elimination’. Organised by the Faculty of Engineering of University of Porto (FEUP), University of Coimbra and NOVA School of Science and Technology of NOVA University of Lisbon, it was held in Vila Nova de Gaia supported by the NOR-WATER Network and the ZeroPollution4Water Cluster.

Framed in the BlueWWater, ALERT-PFAS, H2OforAll and MAR2PROTECT projects, the event intended to provide an overview on the current state of knowledge and latest developments related to the occurrence, impact and removal of disinfection by-products (DBPs), contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) and microbial contamination. The goal was to offer solutions facing risks in the supply of safe drinking water and alternative water sources for agricultural production

Patricia Quintas, a project officer in the Environment and Marine Resources Control and Management Area of CETMAR, participated in the Winter School to present two actions coordinated by CETMAR. They were the BlueWWater project, on which she gave an overview, and the NOR-WATER Network, which aims at creating a multidisciplinary public-private meeting forum about pollutants of emerging concern, to create opportunities for research and technological developments.

The Winter School included, among other activities, a section specifically devoted to PhD students, who had the opportunity to present a poster presentation and do networking with university experts. There were also several workshops on European directives on drinking water, water reuse and urban wastewater treatment or future challenges.

More than 250 people attended the event, making it a great success and reaffirming the relevance of knowledge sharing regarding pollutants management.

Dec 02
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International Cooperation

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CETMAR starts a new project in Peru to contribute to the diversification of small-scale fisheries and the adaptation to climate change

  • The VerTyCe project, funded by the Xunta de Galicia (Galician Regional Government) through Cooperación Galega, is supported by the Peruvian Ministry of Production
  • Two experts from CETMAR will travel to Sechura, Los Órganos and Cabo Blanco, in the department of Piura, during the first week of December to implement the activities planned in the project

The Technology Centre of the Sea – CETMAR, dependent of the Regional Department for Marine Issues, starts a new project in Peru to contribute to the adaptation to climate change of small-scale fisheries in the Department of Piura through a strategy focused on diversifying the sector.

Funded by the Xunta de Galicia through Cooperación Galega and supported by the Peruvian Ministry of Production (also called Produce) through the General Directorate of Small-Scale Fisheries (DGPA), Cetmar will continue the work developed lately in the Bay of Sechura with the Acuipesca Peru project. Now, it will promote actions to help producers and traders to reactivate the economy by improving the marketing system and creating initiatives linked to maritime-fishing tourism.

Two experts from CETMAR’s International Cooperation area will travel to Piura in the first week of December to launch the first activities of the project. They are focused firstly on the analysis of the current marketing system and the evaluation of the critical points and opportunities. To this effect, they will meet with representatives of the General Directorate of Small-Scale Fisheries of Produce, the Municipality of Sechura and two local associations of women marketers.

Secondly, the field mission will be devoted to a participatory diagnosis of the tourism potential of small-scale fishing communities in the Department of Piura. Contacts are planned with fishermen’s associations, municipalities and promoters of maritime-fishing tourism initiatives based on the small-scale fishing traditions in Los Órganos and Cabo Blanco.

The VerTyCe project will be developed over the next six months aimed at strengthening the improvement of commercialisation through women-led enterprises and establishing the conditions for sustainable tourism initiatives, thus diversifying the local fishing economy in the department of Piura.

The planned programme will be completed with actions to strengthen the technical skills of six representatives of the Ministries of Production and Foreign Trade and Tourism, as well as of the municipalities. In this way, once the project is finished, the promotion of initiatives to improve the marketing system and the maritime tourism will be guaranteed.

Nov 21
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Progress Apromex

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Xunta (Galician Regional Government) presents the results of the management of mussel seed in the Apromex project, in which CETMAR participates

  • The Consellería do Mar (Regional Department for Marine Issues) is promoting several initiatives to guarantee the sustainability and development of this strategic aquaculture resource
  • This initiative involves the Marine Research Centre (CIMA) and the Technology Centre of the Sea-CETMAR and focuses on the analysis and management of mussel seed

The Marine Research Centre (CIMA), dependent from the Consellería do Mar, hosted today a session to show the progress achieved in the Apromex project and also announced other actions promoted by the Consellería aimed at promoting the exchange of knowledge.

The General Director of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Technological Innovation, Antonio Basanta, attended the event with the General Director of Fisheries Development, Marta Villaverde, who highlighted the importance of the mussel sector in Galicia, with a key role for the economy and identity of the community. He also stressed the Galician Government’s commitment to innovation and collaboration between institutions, science and the productive sector as the best way to face current and future challenges.

In this way, Mr. Basanta remarked that the Consellería do Mar is promoting various initiatives to ensure the sustainability and development of this strategic aquaculture resource.  The activities, coordinated by CIMA are also supported by centres such as CETMAR and the University of Vigo and co-financed by the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFF).

This is the context framing the Apromex project, led by the Directorate General of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Technological Innovation through CIMA and with the technical support of CETMAR, focused on the analysis and management of mussel seed. This year, a great effort continued with sampling activities to assess the state of the resource on the rocks. The event showed the percentage of mussel seed on the rocks along the Galician coast, including those obtained in the sampling prior to this year’s extraction campaign.

The information is available through a simple query and will help the industry to plan the extraction activities basing on a thorough knowledge of the distribution of the resource.

Other initiatives

Additionally to the progress of Apromex, other relevant initiatives promoted by the Consellería were presented in the event. One was the weekly sampling of larvae in the Galician rías, led by CIMA and developed by CINBIO from the University of Vigo and whose reports are availbale on the Intecmar website. Also the Capacitamex project, led by CETMAR, for the transfer of results of the actions promoted by the Consellería to the mussel producers associations, and the information for the sector included in the Pescadegalicia platform presented by NUNEGAL consulting.

Regarding the weekly sampling, information on mollusc larvae, including mussels, in certain fixed stations located in the Galician rías, will be presented. A new tool to check this information will be soon available on the Apromex website, to simplify the assessment of the current weekly reports.

Networking

This event gathered producers, technicians and researchers and provided an opportunity to learn about new developments and to discuss the strategies and solutions under study to ensure the sustainability and constant development of the sector. It was a session not only to share results, but also to enable dialogue between producers, administration and research.

Nov 18
0

Pollutants in the coastal environment

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The BlueWWater partnership advances in the development of new methods to treat and reduce microplastics and emerging pollutants in the coastal environment between Galicia and Portugal

The European project BlueWWater, coordinated by the Technology Centre of the Sea- CETMAR, is making progress in the objective of controlling and reducing the presence of microplastics and emerging pollutants in both urban wastewater and the coastal environment between Galicia and northern Portugal.

The institutions working on this initiative, co-financed by the European Union through the INTERREG VI-A Spain-Portugal Cooperation Programme (POCTEP) 2021-2027, met on Thursday 7th November at the Aquatic Environment Research Institute for Global Health (iARCUS) of the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) for the third coordination project meeting, reporting on the progress of the project.

During the meeting, organized by the Chromatography and Chemometrics Research Group (ChromChem) of the USC, the partners reviewed the advances in the development and optimization of methods for the evaluation of pollutants and microplastics, almost finished.  It will allow automated and standardized analysis in surface water (river and coastal) and wastewater samples. Twelve external laboratories will participate in the validation of this new analytical method, to be carried out through an interlaboratory comparison (ILCs).

In addition to this activity, led by the USC with the participation of the Technology Institute for the Control of the Marine Environment (INTECMAR), Water and Energy from Porto (E.M.) and IEO-CSIC, the BlueWWater consortium analyzed the planning and coordination of the first sampling campaign of river and coastal waters and Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTP), to be carried out this month in Galicia and in northern Portugal. The samplings were planned in line with the guidelines of the recently approved Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.

Meanwhile, the efficiency of various pilot treatments for the removal of pollutants is being assessed. Also, the study of the potential reuse of treated water for use in agriculture is planned together with  another study on environmental risk based on ecotoxicological tests, while work is being developed in models to evaluate the dispersion of pollutants in the aquatic environment.

All these activities, coordinated by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP), include the participation of Water and Energy from Porto, E.M. (AEdP), the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), IEO-CSIC, the Interdisciplinary Centre for Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR) and the Water Technology Centre (CETAQUA).

Regarding the environmental education and awareness-raising activities planned in  BlueWWater there was, among other activities, the production of an educational video ‘O ciclo de vida do plástico’ (The life cycle of plastic), the clean-up campaigns in the Limia and Miño rivers and the placement of an eco-barrier in Ribeiro de S. Gonçalo (Miño river).  Some of these activities were part of the INTERREG Cooperation Day on 21st September.

NOR-WATER Network

CETMAR is leading efforts to boost and consolidate the NOR-WATER network, born in a previous project with the aim of setting a forum for multidisciplinary public-private collaboration in the field of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs).

Efforts are now focused on the development of a catalogue of skills and technological offer; a website is being designed to include this catalogue, as well as an interactive skills map and a database with information about CECs projects and resources.

Further to the project coordination meeting, the BlueWWater partners attended on Friday morning to the workshop ‘Present and future of the contamination of the aquatic environment by emerging pollutants and microplastics’, which took place in the auditorium of the iARCUS of the USC, with the participation of entities from the scientific and technological field.

This workshop was organized by the USC ChromChem Group and iARCUS in the BlueWWater project and in collaboration with the NePMTune project (Protecting the circular water economy from the threat of persistent, mobile and toxic chemicals), funded by the National Research Agency and the European Union through the NextGeneration/PRTR funds.

The aim of the workshop was to analyze methods and technologies to determine, treat and remove pollutants, as well as the challenges of the recent approval of the new Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.

Speakers discussed the challenges of the Directive regarding the monitoring of pollutants and the ecotoxicological studies and environmental impact analyses in the aquatic environment. Studies on the reuse of treated water for crop irrigation were presented, and there were debate on solutions for the elimination of micropollutants with quaternary treatments in WWTPs that allow progress towards energy neutrality.

About the BlueWWater consortium

Together with CETMAR, coordinating BlueWWater, the consortium includes INTECMAR, the University of Santiago de Compostela, CETAQUA Galicia and IEO-CSIC. The Portuguese partners include the Faculties of Engineering and Science of the University of Porto, CIIMAR, Water and Energy from Porto E.M, Aquamuseu from Vilanova de Cerveira and Environmental Interpretation Centre from Viana do Castelo.

The partnership is also supported by an advisory panel made up of Waters from Galicia, the Miño-Sil Hydrographic Confederation, the Portuguese Environment Agency, Aguas del Norte S.A., Labaqua, S.A. and Viaqua Water Integral Management from Galicia.

This action is co-financed by the European Union through the INTERREG VI-A Spain – Portugal Cooperation Programme (POCTEP) 2021-2027.

Nov 18
0

NatMIRC

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Galicia and Namibia show their interest in renewing the Memorandum of Understanding within a general framework project to be signed with the Kingdom of Spain

  • The agreement would strengthen the relationship between the region and the African country in terms of research, cooperation and fisheries management, as well as the generation of added value
  • Mr. Villares consolidates the historical collaboration between the two regions, which allowed the building of a station supplying fry to the aquaculture sector of the South African country, supported by the research action from CETMAR
  • The regional representative continues with the goal of creating institutional and economic alliances as a driving force for the promotion of the Galician maritime-fishing sector

The Regional Department for Marine Issues and the Namibian Government  show their interest in renewing the Memorandum of Understanding within a general framework project to be signed with the Kingdom of Spain. The agreement aims at keeping the collaboration in terms of research, cooperation and fisheries management.

Addressed by the head of the department, Alfonso Villares, and the deputy minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources of Namibia, Sylvia Makgone, it took place yesterday in a working meeting, during the presence of the Namibian leader at the Second Global Seafood Sustainability Forum, held in Vigo.

This agreement would strengthen bilateral cooperation and development in research and fisheries management, as well as the generation of added value. For this reason, Galicia Regional Government (Xunta) hopes that the Spanish Department will take effective and rapid steps to carry out the process.

CETMAR in the spotlight

Therefore, Mr. Villares management allows to consolidate a historical relationship between the two regions, which led to among other actions, the building of a station supplying fry to the aquaculture sector in the area. It also promoted various research projects to advance knowledge of sustainable commercial species and to evaluate ecosystem, with CETMAR in the spotlight.

This agreement would therefore contribute to further enhance the work of the Centre, which already made it possible the project with the Namibian National Marine Information and Research Centre (NatMIRC), focusing on the assessment of fishery resources, stock assessment and monitoring of fish stocks.

With this meeting, the regional representative continues the round of contacts with the heads of various international governments in which the Galician maritime-fishing sector has a significant impact. The objective is to create institutional and economic synergies with a driving force on the Galician economy and, consequently, to increase the competitiveness of the maritime-industry chain and strengthen its presence in the countries where fisheries is a heavyweight.

Regarding Namibia, where the primary sector accounts for 18.5% of GDP, fisheries accounts for 2.6%. Trade relations are precisely focused in this area, accounting for 90% of Spanish imports. In 2024, exports exceed 40 million Euros.

Nov 18
0

VI SIBECORP

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CETMAR participates in the organisation of the VI SIBECORP, a scientific forum on Latin American fisheries that brings together a hundred researchers in Portugal.

  • The Latin-American Symposium on Reproductive Ecology, Recruitment and Fisheries will last until Friday 15th November at the IPMA headquarters in Oeiras
  • The congress is promoted by the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere together with the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, with the collaboration of the Technology Centre of the Sea as technical secretariat of Red Invipesca

One hundred researchers belonging to more than 35 institutions from a dozen countries are participating from Monday until 15th November in the sixth edition of the ‘Latin American Symposium on Reproductive Ecology, Recruitment and Fisheries-SIBECORP’, held in Portugal.  the Technology Centre of the Sea-CETMAR, dependent on the Regional Department for Marine Issues, was in charge of its organization through the technical secretariat of Red Invipesca.

The congress is organized by the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA), together with the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO), and will be held in a hybrid format (face-to-face and virtually) at the IPMA headquarters in Oeiras, Portugal.

Consolidated as an outstanding forum for scientific discussion for the promotion and application of the ecosystem approach in the assessment of Latin American fisheries, the aim of this sixth edition is to continue enriching knowledge around these topics.

The symposium will allow the exchange of the latest research advances and the generation of new professional alliances among participants from 12 countries: Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Chile, Peru, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Ecuador, Panama, France and the Philippines. Researchers will present nearly a hundred papers in oral and poster sessions.

The presentations are divided into four thematic sessions on reproductive strategies of aquatic organisms, reproductive potential and resilience, recruitment and reproductive success, and reproductive ecology and fisheries management. The program also included two pre-congress courses on 7th and 8th November, and a post-congress course on 18th November.

SIBECORP is an initiative of the Latin American Network of Fisheries Research-Red Invipesca, with CETMAR in charge of the technical secretariat and its activities funded by the Regional Department for Marine Issues.

SIBECORP held its first edition in Vigo in 2009 and since then four other editions have been held in Argentina (2012), Brazil (2015), Chile (2018) and Colombia (2021). Up to now, with the participation of representatives from a dozen countries nearly half a thousand papers have been presented.

As in previous editions, the SIBECORP event responds to the concern of Latin American researchers to promote collaboration between their countries, given the importance of marine and inland fisheries as a vital economic resource for Latin America, Spain and Portugal. On this basis, the symposium aims at identifying and defining lines of research of common interest and to encourage joint projects promoting cooperation in fisheries research.

Registration for this new edition is still open through the symposium’s website, which also gathers all the information about the VI SIBECORP.

Red Invipesca

In addition to participating in the organization of the symposium, and with the support of the Regional Department for Marine Issues through CETMAR, Red  Invipesca is developing other actions to enrich collaboration between marine research institutions in the Latin American area.

Accordingly, Invipesca drew up a map of researchers and research institutions in the marine field in Latin America and developed several exchange actions to develop common strategic lines. The network also serves as an outreach channel for different funding lines for the implementation of projects.

With a view to drawing up the priority lines of action for the next three years, the members of Red Invipesca will participate in the Annual Assembly of the Network during the SIBECORP event.

Nov 14
0

ORE

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Cetmar presents in Brussels the first results of the Flores project on training needs in the marine renewable energy sector (ORE)

  • The European consortium, which estimates that 124,000 new vacancies will be generated in Europe in 2030, works on improving the skills of current workers and preparing the future workforce, with a focus on training
  • The head of Cetmar’s Training area, Lucía Fraga, presented the progress of the project at the meeting of the working group of the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee on Shipbuilding, Ship Repair and Ship restructuring

The first results of the Flores project, “Vision for the future of marine renewable energies”, were presented this week in Brussels by CETMAR, which dependant on the Regional Department for Marine Issues, coordinates the project that works for the development of tools and activities that strengthen the ORE skills.

During a meeting of the working group of the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee on Shipbuilding, Ship Repair and Ship restructuring, the head of Cetmar’s Training area, Lucía Fraga, reported on the progress of the project, financed by the European Erasmus Plus program. The meeting, organized by SeaEurope and IndustriAll in the framework of the social dialogue promoted by the European Commission, addressed common interests and needs for shipbuilding and ORE.

In addition, preliminary results of the “Study to support skills development for the blue economy,” promoted by the EU Directorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries -DG Mare were presented; although all interested parties are still contributing through a survey.

Since January 2023, the 14 partners of the FLORES consortium have been working to promote career paths within the ORE industry, to expand specialized training opportunities and to create an EU Skills Observatory.

This sector currently accounts for around 80,000 jobs in Europe, and experts estimate that up to 124,000 vacancies will be generated by 2030 in the EU. Meeting this growing demand for qualified and appropriately skilled professionals is a significant challenge addressed by the FLORES project, which reinforces the activity of the Pact for Skills.

The objective is to ensure that the training opportunities available in Europe are in line with the current and future needs of the marine renewable energy sector. After analysing the most demanded profiles and the training options, the consortium concluded that the ten most demanded occupational profiles, mainly with engineering background, are project managers and marine renewable energy technicians.

The Flores researchers also judged that qualifications in the sector are usually offered as a specialization rather than basic training, and that programs focus on roles supporting the value chain instead of the most demanded profiles _managers and technicians, which are disregarded by the training offer.

To contribute to the upskilling in marine renewable energies, and for the current workforce, the European consortium drives recycling and upskilling initiatives, promoting innovative approaches to lifelong learning. By means of a repository, the project collects available marine renewable energy training materials.

Furthermore, regarding the preparation of future workers Flores is developing five pilot actions to adapt the existing training materials and approaches in the different European sea basins to the European Pact for Skills. This month the last action, coordinated by the Association of Metal Industries and Associated Technologies of Galicia-Asime, will start preparing experts in the recruitment of talent and human resources.

The results are devised for implementation beyond the project itself. They include a map of the training offer in marine renewable energies, available and open to any organization willing to promote its training offer, and the creation of a community with stakeholders from different industries, framed in the European Pact for Skills.

Apart from CETMAR, the FLORES consortium includes Asime and the Industrial Campus of the University of A Coruña (UDC) in Spain. In Greece, there is the Hellas Research and Technology Center (Certh), and in Belgium Windeurope, the University of Ghent, the Association of European Trade Unions IndustriAll and the European Marine Board. Ireland is represented by the Aqualex Multimedia Consortium, the Netherlands by the companies Deftiq and Bluespring, Germany by the Submariner Network for Blue Growth, France by the Lycée Fulgence Bienvenüe and the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions, and Italy by the Maritime Technology Cluster (mareFVG).

This Project if financed with 700,000 euro from Erasmus Plus through the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA).