Marine protected areas, as controlled, protected, and regulated spaces, constitute a model scenario for monitoring and characterizing spatiotemporal variations of human activities, as well as the potential effects of climate change on them. The development of new technologies (robotics, acoustics, remote sensing, and artificial intelligence) offers the possibility of obtaining the necessary information to monitor maritime activities and analyze the effects of climate change on them.

The TECMAR project proposes to monitor maritime activities and their pressures in the Cabrera and Atlantic Islands National Parks in an integrated manner, with particular attention to those activities derived from small vessels, through the innovative integration of AIS data, satellite imagery, social networks, amphibious drones, and the installation of  hydrophone networks.

Based on the collected information, the project will analyze the effects of climate change on maritime activities and their impacts on benthopelagic ecosystems. To achieve this goal, we will use machine learning models that integrate both environmental variables and socioeconomic indicators under different future scenarios.

Finally, the project will  transfer the obtained scientific results  to the competent authorities and different target audiences. In particular, the TECMAR project will lead a new citizen science initiative directed to diving clubs and focused on monitoring underwater noise.