This November, the Technological Center for Marine Sciences (CETECIMA) has launched an awareness workshop among the coastal population of Mauritania to raise awareness of the effects that climate change will have on the coastal areas of this country and on the media. life of its inhabitants.
This initiative is integrated into the action plan provided for in the European project RES-COAST (Infrastructure Planning and Risk Management Tools for the Development of Coastal Economies Resilient to Climate Change in West Africa) led by the Canary Islands Institute of Technology (ITC). ). This informative workshop was held in the Mauritanian town of Legweichich with the collaboration of the local company Smart Systems Services. This is the second workshop carried out in Mauritania within the aforementioned European project. A few ago
months, a first awareness-raising action took place focused on waste treatment and management.
Research on climate change clearly shows that the climate is undergoing profound changes. Among the changes that may have a greater impact on the coastline, global warming stands out, which is contributing to the rise in sea level, which is expected to increase by 2025 in Mauritania and Senegal by around 0,6 meters.
On the other hand, climatic events, such as storms, could increase the level of water warming and generate algal blooms and have negative effects on the quality of fishing. The impact of these two factors can cause an acceleration of coastal erosion, which would directly affect the inhabitants of low-lying coastal areas.
Finally, in this awareness workshop given by CETECIMA it has been revealed that global warming is also causing a significant impact on coastal ecosystems, biodiversity and the distribution of marine organisms, directly affecting men who work in the sector. of artisanal fishing in Africa.
