LIFE - TARTALIFE project
Programme: LIFE 2012
Project Title: Reduction in mortality of sea turtles in professional fishing
Acronym: TARTALIFE
Duration: 01/10/2013 – 30/09/2018
Total Budget : € 4.220.000,00
ISMAR budget: € 543.000,00
Web site: Not yet available
Summary:
The conservation of Caretta caretta, a priority species included in App. II/IV of the Habitat Directive and protected in various international Conventions, has been representing a strategic issue for the whole Mediterranean basin, with professional fishing being the main threat for the survival of marine turtles.
Several researchers (Lucchetti & Sala, 2010; Casale, 2011) assess about 130.000 catches every year in the Mediterranean, caused by longline (70.000), bottom trawl (40.000) and fixed net (ca.23.000), with over 40.000 estimated deaths; official data do not include all existing boats and underestimate the number of small boats: therefore, a more realistic number can be set at 200.000 catches.
The impact of fishing activity on marine turtles is brought about mainly by 7 out of the 21 Mediterranean countries, responsible for 83% of the total number of bycatches: the Italian fishing fleet is responsible for 18% of the total, thus generating the biggest impact in the Mediterranean.
Statistics, accounts from fishermen and the increasing number of interventions by Italian Marine Turtles Rescue Centres, therefore, prove the urgent need to combat such phenomenon, which each year causes the injury or death of a wide number of turtles and has a strong negative impact on the conservation of the species, rapidly declining in the Mediterranean area.
In line with the UNEP RAC/SPA’s MAP (2001) and the National Action Plan on Marine Turtles which the Italian Ministry of Environment is currently drafting, the project TARTALIFE, involving all 15 Italian regions overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, aims at reducing the mortality of C. caretta and thus contributing to the conservation of the species in the Mediterranean, via 2 specific objectives:
¾ reducing bycatch caused by pelagic longline, bottom trawl and fixed nets disseminating circle hooks and TEDs and testing STARs and a new type of pot
¾ reducing post-capture mortality, training fishermen and strengthening the Marine turtles First Aid/Rescue Centres.
Contact person in ISMAR: a.lucchetti@ismar.cnr.it
Partnership:
- CNR-ISMAR (Ancona)
- Provincia Regionale di Agrigento
- Ente Parco Nazionale dell’Asinara
- Fondazione Cetacea Onlus
- Associazione Centro Turistico Studentesco e Giovanile (CTS)
- Area Marina Protetta Isole Egadi
- Legambiente Onlus
- Area Marina Protetta Isole Pelagie Ente Gestore Comune di Lampedusa e Linosa
- Consorzio UNIMAR Società Cooperativa
