Human planning have caused great, and often destructive, changes to coastal areas. The resulting social costs have been high since these changes have led to the loss of important areas of natural beauty, as well as to huge economic damage, despite in underwater areas the impact is often hard to distinguish. Coasts, seas and seabeds, have often been seen as a separate entity, whereas a modern and correct environmental management should necessarily include both the coastline and the corresponding geographical inland area, in terms of population and economy, as well as the sea and its seabed, so as to produce models for planning and intervention which are valid and scientifically on the cutting edge. Hence the premise for this research, which touches on some investigative fields such as phyto-sociology, or auto-ecology and looks at a species of tropical alga, Caulerpa racemosa. It has been colonising ever-increasing areas of the Mediterranean seabeds for some years now, and is causing growing concern in the scientific world for its impact on some of the most important Mediterranean biotic communities. The aim is, on the basis of the little and still incomplete data available, to predict the repercussions that this phenomenon could cause in the economic sector relating to fisheries and coastal tourism.
A preliminary study of the invasive alga Caulerpa racemosa (Forsskål) J. Agardh. Possible implications for the marine habitat and for fishing and tourism in the Salento peninsular
PICCIOLI RESTA, GIUSEPPE
2011-01-01
Abstract
Human planning have caused great, and often destructive, changes to coastal areas. The resulting social costs have been high since these changes have led to the loss of important areas of natural beauty, as well as to huge economic damage, despite in underwater areas the impact is often hard to distinguish. Coasts, seas and seabeds, have often been seen as a separate entity, whereas a modern and correct environmental management should necessarily include both the coastline and the corresponding geographical inland area, in terms of population and economy, as well as the sea and its seabed, so as to produce models for planning and intervention which are valid and scientifically on the cutting edge. Hence the premise for this research, which touches on some investigative fields such as phyto-sociology, or auto-ecology and looks at a species of tropical alga, Caulerpa racemosa. It has been colonising ever-increasing areas of the Mediterranean seabeds for some years now, and is causing growing concern in the scientific world for its impact on some of the most important Mediterranean biotic communities. The aim is, on the basis of the little and still incomplete data available, to predict the repercussions that this phenomenon could cause in the economic sector relating to fisheries and coastal tourism.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
