IMIS

The Mediterranean is one of the economically most important seas in the world and its only natural entrance is the Strait of Gibraltar. All sea life and commerce passes through this 14-km wide passage and the high evaporation rate causes dense highly saline water to form and sink inside. This leads to surface inflow from the North Atlantic and bottom outflow of western Mediterranean deep water that flows into the Atlantic and affects the deep ocean thermohaline circulation called the global "air conditioner". This system is vulnerable to climate change and may have positive feedback effects. The currents can be very variable under the influence of winds and tides and regulate the movements of both commercial and conservation species. The Gibraltar Line is ideally suited to monitor and understand all of these phenomena. It is deep enough to avoid interference from commercial traffic and operates as a continuous ocean observation system to detect rare events, both oceanographic and biological. It complements satellite observations of surface waters. There are plans to monitor species including iconic whales, turtles, and tuna, as well as commercial bream, cuttlefish, octopus, squid, and eels. The Line itself has been carefully surveyed and will require 26 km of equipment to avoid excessive depths and currents as well as trawlable bottom. The highest profile species is the bluefin tuna, which can sell for over $100,000 each and were recently proposed and denied CITES status after years of overfishing. This is a perfect opportunity for OTN to provide high-quality information to its partners and influence international policy.