This project represents an ambitious and innovative initiative to quantify blue carbon and protect coastal habitats in Andalusia.

Context and challenges
Coastal habitats composed of marshes and seagrass meadows, such as Posidonia oceanica meadows, represent significant carbon sinks. Indeed, they sequester carbon in its organic form and store it for thousands of years. However, despite the importance of this important ecosystem service provided by this coastal vegetation, these habitats are disappearing at an alarming rate (i.e. four times faster than terrestrial forests).
Objectives

1. Quantify the carbon deposits and the sequestration rates of seagrass meadows and marsh habitats in Andalusia, with an emphasis on what is accumulated under the sediments.
2. Analyse and model the development of seagrass meadows over the coming decades in order to define and make an approximate evaluation of the environmental services created by these habitats to mitigate climate change.
3. Explore and encourage already existing initiatives in order to finance conservation and restoration projects of blue carbon sink-habitats with policies for mitigating and adapting to climate change, with a special attention on carbon emissions trading or carbon markets.
4. Create the necessary legal regulations, with maximum guarantees of being replicated at an international level, which will in practice allow these conservation projects to be included in the aforementioned markets. One of the specific objectives in the proposal is the development of key regulations such as standards for verifying carbon credits, drafting carbon offset projects, or creating project catalogues.