Operation Prado Reefs: A Model for Management of the Marseille Coast

Abstract

In 2000, the City of Marseille launched the ``PRADO REEFS{''} program involving the construction and submersion of underwater ecological habitats designed to repopulate, in a few years, previously unproductive seabeds. It was a national-scale pilot project; in fact, nearly 30,000 m(3) of reefs have been submerged at depths of 25-30 m, over an area of 200 ha, off the coast of Marseille. This (sic)6 million project was conducted in close dialogue with all stakeholders concerned. Representative of the ``Plan de Gestion de la Rade de Marseille{''} (Marseille harbor management plan), launched in March 2006, helped to establish relations of trust and cooperation with all ocean management bodies and users, particularly with professional fishermen. The concrete results of this successful cooperation were an outside funding reaching 80% of the total investment. Significant discussions and technical studies, based on two decades of experimentation, were carried out, resulting in the definition of seven types of reefs, adapted to the natural and ecological conditions existing around Marseille and guaranteeing the widest possible diversity of crevices, shelters, and attachment sites for marine organisms. After obtaining regulatory approvals from the Prefecture and following the public consultation in 2006, works began in March 2007, for completion in the summer of the year 2008. As planned from the project outset, an 18-month moratorium period came into force on the submersion of the last reef, giving the users the opportunity to define the future management of the whole area jointly. Scientific monitoring will start in 2009 in order to follow the development of various organisms into the reefs and to gain greater knowledge regarding the local functioning of the marine environment and its relationship with these submerged structures. The ``PRADO REEFS{''} project is a true sustainable development project, an example of what a community can do to protect and enhance its environment and support its socioeconomic activities.