Seatrees has partnered with the Mediterranean non-profit CleanWave Foundation on the MedGardens initiative to restore endangered coastal habitats in Formentor Bay in northern Mallorca. Using a nature-based ecosystem approach, this pilot project focuses on rehabilitating essential Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadows and canopy-forming brown algae forests (Cystoseira s.l.). Through active marine stewardship, community education, and open-source scientific research, the project seeks to establish a replicable model that protects shallow bay habitats while supporting the coastal communities that depend on them.

The process begins across a 5,000 m² footprint in Formentor Bay, where small-scale experimental pilots are established to test active restoration and propagation techniques for both seagrass and algae species. Researchers continuously monitor growth, attachment, and survival rates to compare and validate the most effective methodologies over a three-year trial phase. The resulting data is published as open knowledge to inform similar shallow-bay restoration across the Mediterranean basin, after which validated techniques will be scaled up to recover the entire Bay of Formentor.

Restoration is urgently needed at this site because Formentor Bay is a popular tourist destination where heavy boat traffic and dragging traditional anchors have physically destroyed fragile seabed ecosystems. Unregulated anchoring and broader ecological imbalances have severely degraded these foundational underwater meadows, which act as vital fish nurseries and carbon sinks. To ensure long-term recovery, MedGardens has partnered with local authorities to transition toward sustainable mooring systems while engaging residents through debris removals, volunteer opportunities, and educational signage.