Goods, Services and Sensitivity of European Marine Biotopes: building on the EUNIS database with a view to facilitating Marine Spatial Management.

The first two authors coordinated this work; the names of all other contributors appear in alphabetical order Although many steps have been taken towards the protection of European ecosystems through European, National and International legislation and agreements, there is still a need of further measures to ensure conservation. This is especially true for marine ecosystems, for which difficulties such as inaccessibility and inherent biological complexity have resulted in significant knowledge and management gaps (Fraschetti et al., 2011; Brown et al., 2011). Moreover, much of the existing conservation efforts for the marine environment have addressed either too small scales (e.g. Marine Protected Areas) or too broad objectives (e.g. the European Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC). Facing the increasing human pressure and the consequent degradation of the world's oceans, Ecosystem Based Marine Spatial Management (EB-MSM) is an emerging comprehensive approach which calls for an integrated management of all interactions within and across ecosystems (human uses and conflicts included) with the goal of maintaining ecosystem components and their related goods and services in a resilient and sustainable condition (Douvere, 2008; Katsanevakis et al., 2011). In this light, understanding and assessing the relative value and vulnerability of seabed biotopes is an important first step towards an effective implementation of EB-MSM. Although much such information exists, so far it has been scattered throughout the scientific literature. Within the frames of the EU FP7 program "Monitoring and Evaluation of Spatially Managed Areas" (MESMA), we reviewed 56 European biotopes and compiled the existing information on the goods and services they provide (sensu Beaumont et al., 2007), as well as their sensitivity to major human activities. All benthic biotopes considered in this review were identified and classified according to the European Nature Information System (EUNIS, 2002). Although several other regional classification systems do exist (see for example Fraschetti et al., 2011 and references therein), often allowing for even more refined approaches, the EUNIS strong point lies in that it provides a comprehensive hierarchical pan-European framework, which facilitates the collection of data across Europe. The EUNIS database (http://eunis.eea.europa.eu) comprises, amongst others, a large variety of ecosystem units (from natural to artificial, from terrestrial to freshwater and marine, from coastal to deep waters, etc.) and their associated biotic and abiotic features. In this review, only sublittoral, fully marine EUNIS biotopes at level-4 and beyond (EUNIS, 2002) were considered. Evaluation of the selected marine biotopes, based on the relevant literature and expert judgment, yielded a stunning 91% being assessed as highly important in providing at least one of the following goods and services: food; raw materials; air quality and climate regulation; disturbance and natural hazard prevention; water quality regulation and bioremediation of waste; cognitive benefits; leisure recreation and cultural inspiration; feel good or warm glow; photosynthesis, chemosynthesis and primary production; nutrient cycling; reproduction and nursery areas; and maintenance of biodiversity. Destructive fishing (particularly trawling) and marine pollution were recognized as the main threats affecting most European seabed biotopes, while increased seawater turbidity, mining and aggregate extraction, coastal constructions, biological invasions, shipping-related activities, tourism, hydrocarbon exploitation, and even some practices of scientific research were also noted to exert substantial pressure (Figure 1). The EUNIS database proved to be a handful tool for identifying and assessing natural ecosystem components, providing a welldefined and adequately fine-scaled classification framework. As much of our knowledge about marine resources and benefits remains yet unrevealed (even more so in mesophotic and deep water biotopes), this review cannot be considered conclusive. However, we suggest that the hereby presented assignment of evaluation classes to biophysical features of the marine environment can contribute significantly to shaping priorities, assessing management choices and applying marine spatial plans in the European Regional Seas.