Marine protected areas in Montenegro

As part of the project “Mapping, monitoring and management of the cross-border Natura 2000 network at sea (4M)”, two diving sites were held in Montenegro.

Between 07 – 11.09.2016. the area from Cape Arza to the place Bigovo (Trače bay) was mapped and from 26.09. – 02.10.2016. the area from Bigovo (Trače Bay) to Cape Platamuni was mapped.

Field divers, employees of the Association Sunce and Public Institutions for the Management of Protected Areas of Nature of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County and the volunteers of the Green Home Association, the Ecologist Society of Montenegro, the Institute of Marine Biology of Kotor and the MedCEM Association (MN) make sea bottom profiles for the purpose of describing marine species and habitats and maximum dive depths after each dive.

When making diving profiles, divers use the manuals made in the project 4M: Inventory and Monitoring Manual for Marine Habitat and the Marine Protection Handbook and the Recognition of the Living World of the Adriatic.

We hope that the activities of mapping marine species and habitats, as well as the results of the research will get us to the completion of the project and speeding up the process of establishing marine protected areas in Montenegro.

In the EU accession process, Montenegro has undertaken to protect at least 10% of the coast by 2020 and is currently the only Mediterranean country with no protected area in the sea.