CoastNet 2030, new project to monitor and protect portuguese marine ecosystems

Coordinated by researcher Ana Brito from the Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre (MARE), the project has a total budget of 1.1 million euros and aims to update, improve, and expand the CoastNet monitoring infrastructure, as well as to develop new applications including satellite observations of the coastal zone and passive acoustic monitoring (PAM).

Funded by the MAR2030 Operational Program and under the call for proposals for ‘Support for the Protection and Restoration of Biodiversity and Marine Ecosystems’, the project involves MARE, the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon and the University of Évora. It is coordinated by MARE researcher Ana Brito, and has a diverse team including researchers José Lino Costa, Bernardo Quintella, Paula Chainho, Susana França, Luís Costa, Carlos Alexandre, Joaquim Dias, Helena Adão, Vanda Brotas, Ricardo Melo, Luciane Favareto, Afonso Pereira, Giulia Sent, Ana Amorim, and Clara Amorim and Manuel Vieira from FISHBIOACOUSTICS lab, also from MARE, researchers Rui Taborda, Conceição Freitas and Carlos Antunes from IDL - Instituto Dom Luís, and researcher Helena Mouriño from the Department of Statistics and Operational Research at FCU.

This project will be supported by the COASTNET coastal monitoring infrastructure and the data it already collects through in-situ monitoring and satellite data. It aims to cover the aquatic continuum, from transition zones (such as estuaries and coastal lagoons) to the open ocean, making the information collected available on an open-access geoportal where it is possible to obtain and view the data collected.

The work plan includes 10 tasks, which will improve the existing in-situ monitoring network, including updating coastal buoys, replacing degraded or end-of-life equipment, maintaining equipment, installing new sensors, namely hydrophones for monitoring marine noise, expanding the monitoring network, developing new satellite products for monitoring coastal and offshore areas, and updating and modernizing the geoportal. Ocean literacy will also be promoted through a specific communication program focused on the preservation of marine ecosystems.

The project was officially unveiled to the public on June 25, 2025, at the Sado Estuary Natural Reserve, with key stakeholders in attendance. During the opening, a hydrophone was deployed at the new site for in-situ monitoring, providing an initial insight into the soundscape of this significant estuarine system, which includes the presence of weakfish (an invasive species) and anthropogenic noise (listen below).

This video features the first in-situ audio recording captured using a hydrophone deployed at the new monitoring site in the Sado Estuary Natural Reserve.