Benthic habitats ID and policy cross-links to improve marine conservation

Identifying benthic habitat and providing clear definition of management units is central to the effective conservation of the marine environment. After the creation of a French marine habitat classification providing a comprehensive list of benthic habitats possibly occurring in national waters, we described each habitat unit (biocenosis and associated sub-units). At the same time, in order to facilitate the implementation of the Habitat Directive in the marine environment and clearly establish which habitat units should be considered as natural Habitat types of Community Interest (HCI), a national marine HCI definition was specified, as long as correspondences with habitats units of the national typology. These tools based on the best scientific knowledge available allowed to highlight knowledge gaps and will ease the assessment, management and reporting tasks both at local and national scales. By sharing these units' definitions with other Member States, and sharing the outputs of these projects internationally, we hope to facilitate the identification of common benthic habitat units and help to achieve a harmonised interpretation of HCI to be managed in the framework of the Habitat Directive.