Habitat loss and fragmentation

The Mediterranean region has supported human populations for thousands of years, but in recent decades the combination of high population levels, mass tourism and increased economic activity, has led to habitat loss and placed a high pressure on remaining habitat fragments. According to Conservation International, only 5% of the original extent of the Mediterranean biodiversity hotspot contains almost intact vegetation, and this tends to be found in small scattered patches . Many of its endemic plant species are only found in very small areas, making them particularly vulnerable to further loss.

The combined population of Mediterranean countries is around 450 million, of which approximately 150 million inhabitants live along the coast. A similar number of tourists to this coastal population visits its beaches each year, which together has had a huge impact on the Mediterranean coastline, with more than half of it now urbanised . As the tourism industry has increased, more people have moved to the coast to support the tourism industry which has further exacerbated coastal development and urbanisation. The popularity of the Mediterranean region as a tourist destination is placing massive pressures on its already fragmented and degraded habitats, and this is only likely to get worse as the number of tourists is expected to steadily rise.

Additionally the Mediterranean coastal areas are an important base for a wide range of economic activities. As industries and their associated infrastructure, such as ports, have developed, in many cases impacts on the natural environment have not been taken properly into account, and have led to further habitat loss and fragmentation. Some areas of wetlands and salt-marshes have also been destroyed by the reclamation of land for agricultural purposes or by sand and rock quarrying.