What do you think about the new Ponent Marine Reserve in Mallorca?

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Natural Environment, through the General Directorate of Fisheries, has announced that on Thursday, February 6, the draft decree for the creation of the Ponent Marine Reserve in Mallorca has been made available for public consultation.

“This new reserve will replace the Marine Reserve of the Toro and Malgrats Islands, created in 2022, which has always faced opposition from the fishing sector, even though they should be the main beneficiaries of the measure,” explained the Director General of Fisheries, Antoni M. Grau. Grau emphasizes that “the issues that were intended to be resolved were not addressed, as the fishing sector did not support the initiative, nor did it meet the expectations of its promoters, particularly the Calvià Town Hall.” However, he assures that this new reserve has the support of the affected fishing guilds and the Balearic Federation of Fishing Guilds, and that the opinions of conservation groups were taken into account during its development.

With the establishment of the Ponent Marine Reserve in Mallorca, the recovery of commercial fish populations in marine reserves in the southwest of Palma Bay will be expanded, benefiting artisanal fishing and economic activities related to fish observation. “Although the proposed reserve is smaller than the one created in 2022, as it excludes open sea areas where the Palma fishing guild's purse seine boats will be allowed to operate, it remains ten times larger than the original Toro and Malgrats reserves and will cover nearly 2,000 hectares,” noted the Director General of Fisheries.

Through the public hearing and consultation process, citizens, as well as holders of rights and legitimate interests affected by this new regulatory project, can review the decree and submit proposals and suggestions. Contributions can be made starting Thursday, February 6, the date of publication on the Citizen Participation Portal, until February 26.

The decree maintains the two special diving areas, now called High Protection Zones (ZAP), of the Toro Island and the Malgrats Islands, and creates a third one around Sec Island and its reef. In these areas, both recreational and professional fishing (limited to fixed gear and jonquillo fishing) are restricted. Additionally, navigation speed is regulated with a minimum of 4 knots and a maximum of 10 knots, and the circulation of jet skis is prohibited.

The High Protection Zones, in terms of underwater activities, establish specific points where dives will be permitted with a daily limit. Thus, the Toro Island area will have six designated points, which must be marked, and the Malgrats Islands area will have four designated points, which must also be marked.

Marine reserves are areas where the exploitation of marine resources is restricted to increase the repopulation of juveniles and promote the proliferation of species targeted for exploitation or to protect ecosystems with unique ecological characteristics. Therefore, any activity that could affect marine resources may be regulated, and all extraction activities of marine flora or fauna and underwater activities must necessarily be subject to regulation.

In the Balearic Islands, marine reserves have proven to be an important fisheries management tool of the regional government since 1999, helping to recover commercial fish populations, conserve natural marine habitats, and support small-scale professional fishing. In these reserves, there are more fish, they are larger, species that are scarce outside the reserves are more abundant, and catches are more significant in both quantity and quality. Moreover, marine reserves have become a valuable reference point for diving tourism, with more than 70,000 dives annually. Currently, the Balearic Islands have a network of 12 marine reserves covering a total area of 67,000 hectares.