The Reserve

A certified philosophy

Since its institution, the Reserve has been managed by the Italian Association for WWF, whose experience and efforts in the environmental conservation are very well known. At Grignano, the WWF has promoted the Reserve development and has invested in its management, often supporting innovative environmental policy programmes .

The Reserve environmental policy started from merely acknowledging the priorities ratified by the Italian Ministry of the Environment and evolved considerably over the years, tackling a variety of novel and complex issues. For instance, big efforts have been done in the environmental awakening of the general public and in the socio-economic promotion of the Reserve territorial context.

Each activity promoted by the Reserve in the costal and marine area of its competence induces a relationship with the environment: organizing excursions at sea, accompanying schools along the shore, observing the behavior of marine species or SCUBA diving are actions that might modify the local habitat and alter the natural equilibrium. Being aware of this possible impact is not enough to minimize it; it is rather necessary to make the own conducts compatible with the ecosystem and easily assimilated by the natural processes excluding any alteration.

Consistently with this philosophy, the Reserve undertook the processes required for the European environmental certification EMAS II (CE 761/2001), obtaining it only recently.

In order to reach EMAS standards, thus being certified as an approved institution, Miramare committed itself to making the goals indicated by the Environmental Certification public and transparent. The annual revision and updating of the goals, that need to be reached year by year in order to keep the certification valid, is a constant spur to enhance the environmental services offered by the Reserve.

Within the European Certification context, Miramare Protected Area has committed itself to accomplishing a plan of action, whose goals are aligned with those ratified by the Ministry of the Environment in 2002:

1. safeguarding and exploiting the environment
2. spreading the attention for the marine environment
3. educating to the respect of the environment
4. further developing research and monitoring programmes
5. promoting a sustainable socio-economic development
6. leading an administrative and financial management that takes into account environmental indicators and impacts.

Being managed by the WWF, the Reserve is bound to a double and strict control, as the goals must be – and indeed they are - aligned also with the long-term programme set by the WWF for the marine environment:

• conservation of the marine biodiversity;
• promotion of a fair and sustainable use of marine resources;
• intervention for the recovery of degraded or compromised marine environments.

For two decades, the Reserve has committed itself to spreading the knowledge and the respect for the marine ecosystem, awakening the general public to the natural environment of the Gulf and proposing ever-new activities to attract the attention of tourists and residents.
The range of offers have become increasingly wide and detailed, and the most diverse requirements can now be satisfied.
The recreational and educational proposals are always professional and reliable, as they are supported by a staff of biologists and naturalists constantly involved in research programmes. The output of scientific investigations, often carried out in cooperation with other institutions and universities, offers a great deal of information, which is vital for updating the educational programmes.
However, the Reserve aims not only to the achievement of external goals. A considerable effort is devoted to the involvement of the staff in the decisions and management of the Protected Area, in order to stimulate cooperators’ motivation and enthusiasm in the accomplishment of common goals.

These are the working areas currently pursued by biologists, researchers, educational operators and administrative staff employed at the Reserve:

1. environmental education
2. eco-recreational and divulgation activities
3. scientific and applied research
4. partnerships and cooperations
5. fair and congress participation
6. scientific and popular publications
7. management
   

On the local level the Reserve has already become a place of cultural, educational and scientific importance, collaborating with other institutions such as Natural History Museum of Trieste, various institutes of the Biology Department at the University of Trieste, International Centre for Theoretical Physics of Miramare, Trieste Harbour Office, The Autonomous Region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Chamber of Commerce of Trieste.
Well known in the whole of the Mediterranean both on the national and the international level, Miramare, apart from being one of the few marine reserves in Italy, has managed to develop an intense training and educational activity concerning the management of the protected marine and coastal areas in collaboration with various international organisations for the protection of nature (MedPan, RAC SPA, WWF International). All this has resulted in the creation of a “School for managers of protected marine and coastal areas”.
Basic principals of the Reserve are the ones common to all protected areas. They follow the general principals of conservation and maintenance of the essential ecological processes, protection of biological diversity and a long term use of species and ecosystems.
Besides, next to such strictly scientific objectives there is also the development of pure and applied scientific research, environmental monitoring, environmental education, creation of the alternative ways of marine resource exploitation and of the new possibilities for the socio-economic development.