Baltic Sea, Greifswald Bay, local case study
The aim is to investigate the social-ecological effects of emerging human activities linked to renewable energy. The case study area is Greifswald Bay, it is an important spawning ground for herring in the Baltic Sea.
The area is becoming important for energy infrastructures in the region (e.g. Liquified Natural Gas terminal) and for renewable energy production (wind farms, floating solar panels).
GIS analyses, ecological modelling, ecosystem service analyses, and workshops will be applied to analyse the impacts of conflicting uses and changes in the environment on the social ecological system.
North Sea, Oslofjord, regional case study
Oslofjord is an important multi-use area for many purposes, including industries such as tourism, fishing, and offshore maritime operations. The many uses result in multiple pressures to the coastal areas in and alongside the fjord.
This case study will look at the social-ecological impact of two different scenarios. 1) The pollution in the fjord caused by discharge of sewage, nutrients and pollution from agriculture and industry. 2) Fishing. In 2023 the quota for fishing shrimps in the Skagerrak and North Sea was dramatically reduced and in 2025 the government proposed a ban on fishing in the fjord.
Through iterative workshops the SEADITO project will collect new data on the value of the fjord for recreation, for fishing and tourism not previously integrated into models and decision-making.
Mediterranean Sea, Larger Barcelona, regional case
The aim is to assess the status of the coastal marine ecosystem goods and services (CMES) and the cumulative human pressures they currently experience and may experience in climate change scenarios, to provide tools for decision making aimed at implementing sustainable blue economy activities.
The Case study area extends from the Garraf coast to the south of the Costa Brava region in the North of Catalonia. The main challenges in this area include climate change-induced pressures to socio-ecological resources (warming, drought); human-induced overexploitation and competing use of social-ecological resources (water use, recreational activities, artisanal fisheries, dredging, cable and pipeline landings, habitat loss, ship transport).
Baltic Sea, Archipelago Sea, transnational case
The aim is to illustrate the trade-offs in management strategies to local stakeholders and to aid managers in decision making. The Case study area, the Archipelago Sea, features several ecologically important areas, is intensively used by humans (commercial and recreational fisheries, other recreational activities) and the main anthropogenic pressures include nutrient loading, shipping, alteration of habitats, and invasive species.
Therefore, balancing the environmental, economic, and cultural management goals has been a challenge. SEADITO will apply Bayesian networks, fuzzy cognitive mapping, and ecosystem service valuation to (1) integrate the socio-economic data with biogeochemical and ecological modelling, and (2) link spatial ecological and human activity data to non-spatial national statistic and MSFD data.
Baltic Sea, Central Baltic Sea, transnational case
The aim is to support the Latvian Marine Spacial Planners (MSP) in studies of what-if scenarios considering co-location potential and the flow of services and benefits to bridge Blue Economy, conservation, and social justice goals in decision-making.
Case study area: In the first Latvian MSP, future offshore wind farm (OWF) development and nature conservation were designated space for future use. In some cases, OWF and MPAs areas overlap and are partially located in coastal waters. The case study will facilitate spatially explicit analysis of plan outcomes using an ecosystem services approach.
It will integrate models and tools for assessing cumulative impacts, sea use conflicts and synergies, and change in ecosystem service supply.
Mediterranean Sea, Saronikos Gulf, local case study
The aim is to investigate socio-ecological effects of several opposing human activities on the marine ecosystem services for building a sustainable blue economy. Case study area is centered in Athens’ metropolitan area, as well as several vibrant rural communities on the mainland and the islands. Strong land-sea interactions exist in this area, where opposing land- (sewage, urbanization, port, industry, tourism) and sea-based (fishing, aquaculture, shipping) activities of high economic importance affect the marine ecosystem.
However, all users of sea and coasts depend on supporting the threatened natural habitats for ecosystem services, such as food provisioning, recreational/aesthetic services, and climate regulation. SEADITO will apply characterization, quantification, and modelling social-ecological interactions, as well impacts of drivers and pressures on local communities and ecosystem services; to identify pathways to coastal sustainability and resilience to climate change.
Pan-European case study
The aim is to demonstrate a Pan-European approach to cumulative effect assessment for Europe’s coastal and marine socio-ecological resources through the application of SES models.
The coastal and marine SES of Europe’s sea basins face unprecedented transformation in terms of marine resource demand, exploitation, pollution and climate change, leading to degradation of vulnerable ecosystems that are fundamental for human well-being and for the long-term sustainable use of European Seas. The case study will apply an impact chain rationale covering Drivers of Change (including human activities)-pressure-effect on marine SES.
A user-driven approach will enable to exploit the EDITO Infrastructure and Model Lab including its European marine-coastal data platforms to model effects on the SES from multiple drivers at different spatial scales.
Funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement 101157243. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.