Santander (EFE)
This informative action is part of the final phase of the European scientific project “3D PARE”, which seeks to improve the richness of the seabed degraded by human action and which has been testing its effectiveness for three years in the Bay of Santander and in areas ports of Caen (France), Bournemouth (United Kingdom) and Porto (Portugal).
Two divers have lowered this reef to the MMC aquarium today, made up of three pieces with a total weight of 180 kilograms created with a 3D printer from sustainable mortars and synthetic polymers that are crossed by “tunnels” to allow the entry of beings to its interior.
Octopuses, algae, fish, starfish, barnacles, crabs, anemones and other invertebrates have already colonized these structures in the sea, as now the researchers from the University of Cantabria Elena Blanco and Adrián Yoris, who have designed these reefs, hope that so do the tenants of the Cantabrian museum and the San Sebastián Aquarium, where a reef has also been installed.
“They have been submerged (in the sea) for three years and it has been seen that the biodiversity they attract is equal to or greater than that of the natural environment,” highlighted Blanco.
The importance of holes and tunnels
The marine environment is home to many economic activities in the Atlantic countries, such as tourism, leisure or those related to the exploitation of natural resources, which have an impact on marine ecosystems such as the loss of biodiversity, the migration of native species and the establishment of invasive species.
The use of artificial reefs could be a short-term solution, by anchoring in degraded natural environments, explained Blanco.
In this way, an artificial reef can help both to increase the populations of organisms associated with natural reefs and to increase the richness and quantity of species of commercial interest, or even to create an attractive environment for leisure activities such as dive.
Artificial reefs attract a great diversity of species, but no significant differences between shapes and materials have been found.
However, the researchers consider it essential to incorporate holes and tunnels to attract crabs, octopuses, fish, crabs and shrimps because they create habitats for them to have a refuge, build their homes and provide them with shade and flows of water currents, necessary for the Sessile species – which are attached and filter feeders – can grow.
In this sense, biologists have found that large tunnels attract more beings than small ones.
“It is a remarkable result with a view to designing future artificial reefs”, stressed the researcher, who has also valued the contribution of systematizing the studies -there are nine in this project-, since in previous experiences in which Artificial reefs have been submerged after they have not been monitored.
The most attractive Cantabrian museum
The Vice President of Cantabria, Pablo Zuloaga, who attended the placement of this artificial reef, stressed that from now on “the public eye” will be able to see how artificial reefs and the life that develops around them evolve.
“They are essential to minimize the impact of many maritime works that are carried out on the coast,” Zuloaga indicated, before recalling that the MMC is the most visited museum in Cantabria.
The consortium developing this European project is made up of the Ecole Supérieure d’Ingénieurs des Travaux de la Construction de Caen, the Instituto Português do Mar e da Atmosfera, the Universidade do Porto and Bournemouth University, as well as the UC.