The Posimed project begins in Benidorm the measurement of the Posidonia meadows along Alicante coast

The Posimed project, promoted more than two decades ago by the Institute of Coastal Ecology, has started in Benidorm the new season of measurements of the Posidonia meadows along the Alicante coast. The Councilor for Beaches, Mónica Gómez, today exchanged impressions about the state of the Benidorm meadows with Gabriel Soler, director of the Institute, and Santiago Jiménez, project coordinator, since the specialized personnel have already carried out the measurements in several of the Benidorm sampling stations.

The councillor has highlighted "the benefits of this project" and "the value that these data bring to each municipality to have a real and precise x-ray of the state of our seabed in terms of biodiversity and natural wealth."

Pending the detailed report that will be sent later, Jiménez has stated that the measurements taken yesterday in the city's waters indicate that the Benidorm meadows are in a "stable or positive trend" state. The Councilor for Beaches has stressed that "this circumstance certifies the excellent quality of Benidorm's waters."

Jiménez has detailed that the provincial scope project started these days in Benidorm will continue until “the end of July or the beginning of August” when the measurements will end, and each municipality will be informed in detail of the state of their meadows. In the report delivered to each locality, data from the last year and several previous years appear, which allows "to see and know the trend and evolution of the meadows."

Specifically, the objective of the project, as explained by the Posimed coordinator, is to “detect possible changes” in the province's grasslands, with measurements being carried out in all coastal municipalities. Thus, there are 66 stations distributed throughout the province, where specialized personnel check the state of the meadow based on "two variables: density and coverage."

The Posimed coordinator has clarified that the Posidonia meadow grows between 1 and 3 centimetres each year, so "its evolution" is "slow growing or decreasing."

It is planned that tomorrow, Thursday, if the sea allows it, the Posimed project staff will measure the fourth and last sampling station in Benidorm, the Poniente station.