Resolution
MEPC.134(53)
DESIGNATION OF THE CANARY ISLANDS AS A PARTICULARLY SENSITIVE SEA AREA
(Adopted
on 22 July 2005)
THE
MARINE ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION COMMITTEE,
BEING
AWARE of the ecological, social, economic, cultural, scientific and educational
value of the Canary Islands, as well as its vulnerability to damage by
international shipping traffic and activities in the area and the steps taken
by Spain to address that vulnerability,
NOTING
that the Guidelines for the Identification and Designation of Particularly
Sensitive Sea Areas adopted under resolution A.927(22) set out procedures for
the designation of particularly sensitive sea areas,
HAVING
CONSIDERED the proposal from Spain to designate the Canary Islands as a
Particularly Sensitive Sea Area,
HAVING
AGREED that criteria for identification of a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area
provided in resolution A.927(22) are fulfilled for the Canary Islands,
1.
DESIGNATES the Canary Islands as defined in Annex 1 to this resolution as a
Particularly Sensitive Sea Area; and
2.
INVITES Member Governments to note the establishment of associated protective
measures defined in Annex 2. The associated protective measures and the date of
their entry into force are expected to be adopted by the Maritime Safety
Committee at its eighty-first session in May 2006.
Annex 1.
DESCRIPTION OF THE CANARY ISLANDS PARTICULARLY SENSITIVE SEA AREA
1.1
The Canary Isles, comprising seven larger islands and six islets lying at
latitude 28°-29°N, form an archipelago of volcanic origin
in the Atlantic Ocean, some 100 km off the western coast of Africa. Their total
area is 7,273 km². For administrative purposes, they are divided into two
provinces: Santa Cruz de Tenerife, comprising the islands of Tenerife, La
Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro; and Las Palmas, comprising Gran Canaria,
Lanzarote and Fuerteventura. The islets, called Alegranza, La Graciosa,
Montaña Clara, Roque del Este, Roque del Oeste and Lobos, are all
grouped around the two last-named islands.
1.2
The Canarian island margin is made up of the seven islands and the islets
forming the archipelago, as well as a number of submerged mountains, all of
them volcanic and rising directly from deep in the earth's mantle. Owing to
their volcanic origin, the characteristics of the island margins are unique. In
general terms, the depth profile and underwater morphology of the Canary Isles
are sharply defined, with very narrow island shelves and steeply sloping shores
scored by landslide channels that descend rapidly to the abyssal plain,
transporting collapsed materials for tens of kilometres.
1.3
As to the shelf profile of the various islands, there are two different
groupings. The first, comprising Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La
Gomera, has shelves that, although limited in size, are still large in relation
to those of the second group made up of Tenerife, La Palma and El Hierro.
1.4
The physiography of the sea-beds around the archipelago is testament to the
continuous volcanic activity and their location on a prograding margin; the
morphological units caused by landslides and intrusions are frequent, and the
sea-beds in the proposed area are largely unstable.
1.5
The morphology of the coasts reflects the qualities of their constituent
materials, which range from steep cliffs containing basalt formations to low
coastlines made of pyroclastic materials and porous rocks that are difficult to
restore once accidentally polluted.
1.6
The beaches generally lie on the south side of the islands, their morphology
highly influenced by the effects of the prevailing trade winds.
1.7
These winds magnify the scale of any accidental spillage, helping to solve
problems in some areas and making the disaster still worse in others.
1.8
The area is defined by a line: