Madrid is returning marine sciences to the island to strengthen its overall project of the state

The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (Blucan), the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, the Technological Institute of the Canary Islands (ITC), the University of La Laguna (ULL) and the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) will receive €2 million to contribute their knowledge to create more sustainable aquaculture in Spain. “We were able to take into account the marine research that we conducted in the Canary Islands,” highlights Carlos Navarro, Director of the Canary Agency for Research, Innovation and Information Society (ACIISI), Carlos Navarro. “This is very good news and it is the result of the work that we are doing from the island institutions.”

Marine science is one of the eight areas into which the Supplementary Plans scheme is divided. This new line of financing, created from funds next generationAnd the Its goal is to unify the scientific resources available to each independent community to respond to a common goal. In this case, the development of a network of research, innovation and knowledge transfer about the Spanish marine and coastal environment. The eight types of complementary plans also cover the areas of agrifood, astrophysics, high energy physics, advanced materials, biodiversity, biotechnology applied to health, quantum communication, renewable energy, and hydrogen.

So far, the Canary Islands have been able to join two of the eight areas of scientific and technical importance. Specifically, the archipelago has chosen one project to develop renewable hydrogen and another to contribute to the care of biodiversity. The entities selected were the Canarian Oceanic Platform (Plocan) – which received €6 million to contribute to the green energy and hydrogen scheme – and Fuerteventura Technology Park, which received €23 million for its proposal. This entity, together with the Galician community, will lead a project aimed at halting the biodiversity crisis and promoting mitigation and adaptation to natural systems of climate change through the use of pseudo-satellites.

Now the archipelago is capable too scratch Another two million so that its scientific entities can demonstrate their value in a highly developed area of ​​the islands, such as marine science. Of these amounts, just over two million euros, the ministry will provide 1.3 and 716,000 euros from the Government of the Canary Islands.

In addition to integrating Canarian sciences into the state’s strategic research plan – and thus recognizing its value – the archipelago’s proposal stands out because it has brought about cooperation among all the entities devoted to the study of the sea. It is remarkable, in fact, because it is the first time that all the research centers in the sector, located on the islands of Gran Canaria and Tenerife, have agreed to jointly participate in a call for these properties. This new synergy will allow them to choose more competitive funds in the future.

The Marine Sciences Program in the Canary Islands (CrecEnAzul), which has been accepted by the Ministry of Science, will develop actions aimed at facilitating the implementation and expansion of companies and the integration of processes and strategies for the sustainable development of activity in this sector.

To this end, studies related to the selection of new species and the implementation of new production processes will be carried out. Formulas will also be sought to overcome administrative and logistical bottlenecks, participation in the development of a sustainable strategic plan for the sector and comprehensive measures will be implemented to monitor the impact of marine aquaculture on the environment to reduce its impacts. . from carbon.

A new way to investigate

Supplemental plans contemplate the participation of several independent communities in a program, with the possibility of participation in many of them. In this way, unique capabilities and infrastructures can be leveraged, along with the possibility of corporate participation.

The duration of the programs will be two or three years, with co-financing commitments and shared governance mechanisms, promoting regional economic transformation. The funding obtained by Blukan was distributed during 2021, so its work may be delayed until 2025, when it will have to justify all the activities and research results that have been carried out until then. For its part, the Technological Institute of Fuerteventura received its budget line at the beginning of this month, with which it will be able to carry out its experiments until 2026. Those implemented by this consortium of universities and marine research centers can also be extended until 2026.

Because it is a comeback, the Canary Islands will only participate in a small part of the entire strategic plan, related to more sustainable aquaculture development. In fact, the archipelago will receive only 3% of the approximately 54 million that will be distributed to the seven participating communities (Murcia, Andalusia, Cantabria, Valencian Community, Galicia, Canary Islands and Balearic Islands).

In all, eight supplementary plans have been launched that will mobilize €444.8 million up to 2025, of which the Ministry of Science and Innovation will finance €285.4 million, 64% of the total budget, and the communities the remaining 36%, with €159.4 million. . Each will share at least four autonomous regions and will be coordinated by the state and society. More than 200 research centers and universities are expected to participate, in which more than 2,000 scientists and technicians from all over the country will work. These programs are expected to allocate 152 million euros to new employees, which means the employment of more than 1,000 researchers and technicians.