The 37th CIESM Congress Concludes That The Mediterranean Is A Victim Of Its Own SuccessJune 25, 2004CIESM calls for urgent and massive funding to support Mediterranean marine science so that we can know more about endangered marine life and deep-sea ecosystems on our own Planet than about the remote possibility of life in outer space. The Mediterranean Sea is now facing unprecedented pressure as a result of mounting human impact (coastal degradation; new pollutants; over fishing) and tropicalisation of its waters and fauna. Monaco--H.S.H. Prince Albert of Monaco, CIESM President, and Professor Frederic Briand, CIESM Director General, will hold a press conference at CIESM Headquarters, Villa Girasole, 16 Bvd. de Suisse, Monte-Carlo on Monday June 28, at 11:00. The Commission is an intergovernmental Organization that brings together 23 Member States and more than 2,500 research scientists. The President emphasized that scientists work with absolute freedom of expression when delivering advice to the Commission. "Our organization is entirely independent and apolitical, which has enabled a rare cooperation between the north and south shores, even during times of military conflict. He hailed the recent adhesion of Portugal to CIESM as an important step in the 85-year-old history of the Commission. Prince Albert also warned about the fragile biodiversity of the Mediterranean Sea, which has been degraded by human interference, climatic change and the fast-growing number of invasive tropical species in its waters". Prof. Frederic Briand said that the Mediterranean "is a remarkable microcosm that allows scientists to solve many of the world oceans' mysteries" and warned of "unprecedented" change in marine biodiversity. Not only is the Mediterranean particularly vulnerable to accidents similar to what occurred with the oil tanker 'Prestige', but also to the emergence of new types of contaminants. The 700 Congress participants declared themselves to be very concerned by the effects of climate change on the Mediterranean waters, whose deep layers below 1000 meters stay at a constant temperature of 13 8C, which is much warmer than the world ocean. "Our oceanographic sensors confirm a small but constant rise in temperature in the deep sea. And a variation of only one tenth of a degree may have a disastrous effect on marine species used to living in a constant environment", said Briand. The CIESM Congress covered many other fascinating aspects of Mediterranean marine science such as: archeology, whales' distribution, newly found marine viruses, and massive coastal erosion. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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