@techreport{nokey,

title = {RESTORE4Cs Policy Brief: How can coastal wetlands help achieve EU climate goals?},

author = {M. del Mar Otero and A. Camacho and D. Abdul-Malak and E. Kampa and A. Scheid and E. Elkina},

url = {https://www.etc.uma.es/wp-content/uploads/R4Cs-Policy-Brief-EU-climate-goals.pdf},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-09-01},

urldate = {2024-09-01},

abstract = {The first RESTORE4Cs Policy Brief of RESTORE4Cs, “How can coastal wetlands help achieve EU climate goals?“, highlights the importance of European coastal wetlands for reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions.



The key messages of the first RESTORE4Cs Policy Brief include:



1) Coastal wetlands are important natural carbon stores, given their capacity to sequester carbon efficiently while emitting relatively less methane – a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) with much higher warming potential than CO2 at medium term.



2) When well-preserved or restored, coastal wetlands deliver key ecosystem services and have positive impacts on the environment and society. The conservation and restoration of coastal wetlands in Europe is therefore a cost-effective climate mitigation strategy in line with the European Climate Law and can contribute to reach climate neutrality by 2050.



3) Robust carbon certification sche­ mes can offer additional tools to finance projects for protecting and restoring European coastal wetlands. Coastal wetland protection and restoration activities that contribute to reduce GHG emissions, sequester carbon and provide long-term storage should qualify and be recognised under the EU Certification Framework for Carbon Removals. These measures provide an opportunity for unlocking new financial sources for wetland conservation and restoration while ensuring ecological and social benefits with the necessa­ry safeguards in place.



4) Actions to protect and restore carbon sinks – including the sustainable management and restoration of wetlands – are qualified by the EU Taxonomy Regulation as ‘environmentally sustainable’ economic activities. These actions can create incentives for companies that aim to become more climate-friendly and attract new investments for restoration by labelling certain activities as ‘environmentally friendly’ or reducing their financial transaction costs.},

keywords = {Climate Change, Transboundary management, Wetlands},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {techreport}

}

@techreport{Trombetti2022,

title = {Mapping and assessment of the state of wetland ecosystems: A Mediterranean perspective},

author = {M. Trombetti and D. Abdul-Malak and A. Sánchez-Espinosa and A. Guelmami and N. García and E. Fitoka},

editor = {Interreg Mediterranean Biodiversity Protection Community project},

url = {https://www.etc.uma.es/wp-content/uploads/Report_Mapping_and_assessment_of_the_state_of_wetland_ecosystems_2022.pdf},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-06-01},

urldate = {2022-06-01},

abstract = {The Pan-Mediterranean wetland ecosystem map fills a major knowledge gap in the region by setting a Mediterranean-wide knowledge base on wetland ecosystems following the Ramsar definition of wetlands. The wetland ecosystem mapping is complemented by the assessment of wetland biodiversity conditions that aims to highlight priority areas for potential conservation and restoration actions in the region, and to support the regional efforts in advocating for effective wetland management and nature-based solutions in the Mediterranean region. The outputs of this activity include (i) a Pan-Mediterranean wetland ecosystem knowledge base, and (ii) an assessment of their condition that will be used to raise awareness and advocate for a change in wetland management that promotes effective protection, conservation and restoration. The outputs also support regional and national inventories, filling a major regional gap locating Mediterranean wetland habitats, and feed regional and global agendas, namely the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2030, the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable development as well as the Ramsar Convention.},

keywords = {Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation and management, Ecosystem services, Environmental conservation, Mediterranean sea, Protected areas, Wetlands},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {techreport}

}

@techreport{Abdul-Malak2021,

title = {Carbon pools and sequestration potential of wetlands in the European Union},

author = {D. Abdul-Malak and A. I. Marín and M. Trombetti and S. San-Román},

editor = {European Topic Centre on Urban, Land and Soil Systems},

url = {https://www.eionet.europa.eu/etcs/etc-uls/products/etc-uls-reports/etc-uls-report-10-2021-carbon-pools-and-sequestration-potential-of-wetlands-in-the-european-union},

isbn = {978-3-200-07433-0},

year  = {2021},

date = {2021-09-01},

urldate = {2021-09-01},

abstract = {Wetland ecosystems as defined by the Ramsar convention host a wide variety of wetland habitats across terrestrial, coastal and marine environments. When in good condition, wetland habitats provide many societal benefits and values, among others, they play a crucial role in the carbon cycle because of their capacities to limit the availability of oxygen to soil microbes and decomposition of organic matter. Policies and practices do not sufficiently consider these interconnections and interdependencies in Europe yet due to the fragmented consideration of this ecosystem in their schemes. The findings of this report argue that healthy European wetland habitats have an enormous capacity to contribute to carbon neutrality objectives in Europe. Across the wide array of European ecosystems they belong to, wetland habitats have a role in contributing to the carbon cycle. The most meaningful European wetland habitats to contribute to carbon storage include well-functioning salt marshes, healthy mires, bogs and fens as well as riparian, fluvial and swamp forests. Furthermore, when healthy, terrestrial wetlands namely mires, bogs and fens (where peatlands underly), followed by riparian, fluvial and swamp forests as well as inland marshes ensure a high carbon sequestration potential. If kept in a good condition or restored, the EU wetland related carbon stock capacity of their overall area in Europe (EU 27 and the UK) is estimated to be between 12 - 31 Gt CO2-eq, corresponding to an overall value ranging between 3 and 8 years of EU GHG emissions1. Whereas the Carbon sequestration potential of healthy EU Wetlands per year is calculated to range between 24 and 144 Mt CO2 eq yr-1 (24,352 and 14,3719 kt CO2 eq yr-1), being a quantity that contributes to “neutralising” between 1 and 4 % of the total GHG emissions registered in the EU27 and the UK (according to 2018 reference year for reported emission). These findings should trigger wetland conservation and restoration to become a high priority for the EU to support reaching climate neutrality by 2050. Climate reporting systems require Parties to report on anthropogenic emissions and removals of greenhouse gases which includes reporting heavily modified peatland habitats only partially and dominantly as a net carbon emitter. Using ecosystem-based approaches to managing reported peatland habitats and re-establishing their ecosystem functioning do transform many of them from climate ‘heaters’ (carbon net sources) into climate ‘coolers’ (carbon net sinks).},

keywords = {Climate Change, Ecosystem services, Environmental conservation, Land and soil, Soil functions, Wetlands},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {techreport}

}

@techreport{UNEP-MAP2020,

title = {SoED 2020 : State of Environment and Development in Mediterranean},

author = {UNEP-MAP and Plan-Bleu and D. Abdul-Malak and A. I. Marín and C. Schröder and A. Sánchez-Espinosa},

url = {https://planbleu.org/en/soed-2020-state-of-environment-and-development-in-mediterranean/},

year  = {2020},

date = {2020-12-01},

abstract = {The SoED provides a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of environment and development interactions in the Mediterranean region. The 2020 version consists of eight thematic chapters and is complemented by two summary papers: Summary for Decision Makers and Key Messages. Topics covered include: socio-economic drivers and trends; climate change; biodiversity and ecosystem services; economic activities and related pressures; coastal dynamics and related impacts; food and water security; health and environment; and governance.},

keywords = {Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation and management, Environmental conservation, Marine protected areas, Mediterranean sea, Pressures, Protected areas},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {techreport}

}