Valencia – 16.01.20. This morning the opening of the conference “Maritime Surveillance in the Western Mediterranean” took place, organised by the Fundación Valenciaport in collaboration with the Port Authority of Valencia (APV) and with the support of three projects financed by the European Commission: PROTEUS (MED Programme) and ODYSSEA and HISEA (Horizon 2020 Programme).

The aim of this conference, which was opened by the Director General of the Fundación Valenciaport, Antonio Torregrosa, was to bring together the various initiatives being carried out with regard to maritime surveillance, so that they are known by all those involved in this work and can coordinate their activities to obtain better results using the same means.

According to the European Commission, Maritime Surveillance includes border control, safety and security, fish farm control, customs, environment and defence.

Maritime surveillance is an issue that is receiving increasing attention due to the growing environmental awareness of society which results in a greater need to care for the seas and oceans. At the same time, there are more and more activities that are carried out at sea such as nautical activities, the development of fish farms or the production of energy and, especially in the Mediterranean, the migratory phenomenon between the southern and northern coasts also conditions the surveillance of these waters. In addition, the technological development of recent years has made it possible to carry out surveillance tasks that would have been unthinkable a few years ago. The conference was structured into three sessions, the first of which was on Security and Defence, with the participation of representatives from the Guardia Civil, Maritime Rescue, the Spanish Navy and the National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA), among others. The second session, dedicated to Oceanography, included representatives from Puertos del Estado, the University of Alicante, the Institute of Marine Sciences and Utek. Finally, the third session, entitled Biodiversity, included presentations by representatives of the Generalitat Valenciana, Dénia City Council, Fundación Valenciaport, Port Authority of Valencia, RAC/SPA (Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas) and the innovative companies Leitat, RAC/SPA and Orbital EOS.