is the “Infrastructure Management for the Restoration of Coastal Ecology”
project for the area under the jurisdiction of the Port of Marseille Authority (GPMM)
. The project was selected following a call for projects on the theme of the ecological restoration of the marine environment issued in May 2010 by the Agence de l’eau Rhône-Méditerranée-Corse
and the PACA Marine Competitiveness Centre
- develop a marine ecosystem assessment method for use as a decision-support tool for infrastructure management and sustainable investment,
- formulate an action plan for the area under the jurisdiction of the Port of Marseille Authority contributing to the rehabilitation of marine ecosystems,
- develop the operational strategy for implementing the plan as well as integrated projects and measures to mitigate the impacts where necessary.
SAFEGE is spearheading one of the three pilot schemes for the project: Cystore
The aim of Cystore is to develop methods for transplanting algae of the genus Cystoseira, as an operational tool for use by the port authorities in their ecological restoration and enhancement programme.
Cystoseira is a genus of brown algae that plays an important role in habitat structuring and in the aquatic food chain.
Certain species are used as an indicator of the ecological status of water bodies under the WFD, and are listed in Appendix II of the Bern Convention.