Candidatura Reserva da Biosfera - Santana Madeira Biosfera

The existence of several marine reserves in the region, integrated into the
European ecological network Natura 2000, which management plans determine the total
prohibition of the development of professional and sport fishing industry has great
importance in the maintenance of stocks of some species of commercial interest,
particularly in commercial fish species.
The integration of regional commercial fishing fleet in the EU policy on fisheries, has
resulted in a significant investment in structures and port facilities and the modernization
and construction of vessels, but also in the development of aquatic resources, particularly
through the deployment of artificial reefs, aquaculture growth and the determination of
closed seasons as recently established for the populations of limpets (Patella aspera and
Patella candida).
The use of capture techniques and highly selective determination of catch quotas by
species, coupled with investment in aquaculture, research and resource development,
creation of marine reserves and the size and structure of the local fleet, determined the
sustainability of the industry and that presents a high development potential, particularly
in sustained exploration of new marine resources such as crustaceans.
Agriculture and livestock
The high potential for sustainable development of agriculture in the proposed
Biosphere Reserve area is expressed by the small size of farms where farming is
developed in a distinctly handmade way, and is little mechanized and typically
policultural, where crop associations and rotations are used since ancient times.
The increasing growth of certified organic production in the agricultural area that
exists in the municipality of Santana, brings environmental and economic gains, while
preserving the ecological balance and achieving higher profits with organic products as
well as the socio-cultural development, whereas the mosaic landscape will thus be
preserved at the expense of large land consolidation uncharacterized from landscape and
local traditions, and can thus be coupled to other tourism products on either gourmet or
ethnographic context.
The vast wealth of the municipality of Santana in varieties of cereals and other
agricultural native species, enable farmers to produce unique varieties of high quality and
Application of Santana, Madeira to Biosphere Reserve – UNESCO - MAB 117