Adriatic Sea

"Adriatic" redirects here. For other uses, see Adriatic (disambiguation).

Adriatic Sea
Map of the Adriatic Sea
Location	Europe
Coordinates	43°N 15°E
Primary sources	Adige, Bojana, Drin, Krka, Neretva, Po, Soča
Catchment area	235,000 km2 (91,000 sq mi)
Max length	800 km (500 mi)
Max width	200 km (120 mi)
Surface area	138,600 km2 (53,500 sq mi)
Average depth	252 m (827 ft)
Max depth	1,233 m (4,045 ft)
Water volume	35,000 km3 (8,400 cu mi)
Residence time (of Ocean water)	3.4±0.4 years
Salinity	38-39 PSU
Max temperature	24 °C (75 °F)
Min temperature	9 °C (48 °F)

The Adriatic Sea ( /ˌeɪdriˈætɨk/) is a body of water separating the Apennine Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the Apennine Mountains from the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto, where it connects to the Ionian Sea, to the northwest and the Po Valley. Its coasts belong to Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Albania. The Adriatic contains more than a thousand islands, largely located along its eastern coast. It is divided into three basins—the northern being the shallowest and the southern being the deepest, with the maximum depth of 1,233 metres (4,045 feet). The Otranto Sill is located at the border of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. The prevailing currents flow in the counterclockwise direction from the Strait of Otranto, along the eastern coast and back to the strait along the western, Italian coast. Tidal movement is slight, although larger amplitudes are known to occur occasionally. The salinity of the Adriatic is lower compared to the Mediterranean, because the former collects a third of fresh water flowing into the latter, acting as a dilution basin. The surface water temperature generally ranges from 24 °C (75 °F) in summer to 12 °C (54 °F) in winter, significantly moderating the climate of the Adriatic Basin. Shores of the Adriatic are populated by more than 3.5 million people, and the largest cities are Bari, Venice, Trieste and Split.

The Adriatic Sea sits on the Apulian or Adriatic Microplate, which separated from the African Plate in the Mesozoic. The movement of the plate contributed to the Alpine orogeny and uplift of the Apennines. All types of sediment are found in the Adriatic, with the bulk of the material transported by the Po and other rivers on the western coast. The western coast is alluvial or terraced, while the eastern coast is well indented with pronounced karstification. There are dozens of marine protected areas in the Adriatic, designed to protect the karst habitats and biodiversity of the sea. The sea is abundant in flora and fauna—more than 7,000 species are identified as native to the Adriatic, including endemic, rare and threatened ones.

The earliest settlements on the Adriatic shores were Etruscan, Illyrian, and Greek. By the 2nd century BC, the shores were under the control of the Roman Republic. In the Middle Ages, the Adriatic shores and the sea itself were controlled, to a varying extent, by a series of states—most notably the Byzantine Empire, the Republic of Venice, the Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire. The Napoleonic Wars resulted in the First French Empire gaining control of the coasts and the British effort to counter the French in the area, ultimately securing most of the Eastern Adriatic and the Po Valley for Austria. Following unification, the Kingdom of Italy started an eastward expansion that lasted until the 20th century. Following World War I and the collapse of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, the control of the eastern coast passed to Yugoslavia and Albania. The former disintegrated in the 1990s, resulting in four new states on the Adriatic coast.

The Adriatic Sea is significant to the economies of the countries found along its coasts, especially in terms of fisheries and tourism. Adriatic Croatia has grown relative to the rest of the Adriatic basin. Maritime transport is also a significant branch of economy in the area—there are 19 major seaports in the Adriatic handling more than a million tonnes of cargo per year. The largest Adriatic seaport by annual cargo turnover is the Port of Trieste, while the Port of Split is the largest Adriatic seaport in terms of the number of passengers served per year. Italy and former Yugoslavia defined their maritime boundaries by 1975 and the boundary is recognised by Yugoslavia's successor states, but maritime boundaries between Slovenian, Croatian, Bosnia and Herzegovinian and Montenegrin waters are disputed. Italy and Albania defined their maritime boundary in 1992.

Geography

Bay of Kotor, a ria in the Southern Adriatic

The Adriatic Sea is bordered in the southwest by the Apennine peninsula, in the northwest by the Italian regions of Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and in the northeast by Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Albania—the Balkan peninsula. In the southeast, the Adriatic Sea connects to the Ionian Sea at the 72-kilometre (45 mi) wide Strait of Otranto. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) defines the boundary between the Adriatic and the Ionian seas as a line running from the mouth of the Butrinto River (39°44'N) in Albania to the Karagol Cape in Corfu, through this island to the Kephali Cape (these two capes are in lat. 39°45'N), and on to the Santa Maria di Leuca Cape. It extends 800 kilometres (500 miles) from the northwest to the southeast and is 200 kilometres (120 miles) wide. It covers 138,600 square kilometres (53,500 square miles) and has a volume of 35,000 cubic kilometres (8,400 cubic miles). The Adriatic extends northwest from 40° to 45°47' north, representing the northernmost portion of the Mediterranean. The Adriatic Sea drainage basin encompasses 235,000 square kilometres (91,000 square miles), yielding a land to sea ratio of 1.8. Mean elevation of the drainage basin is 782 metres (2,566 feet) above the sea level, whereas its mean slope is 12.1°. Major rivers discharging into the Adriatic are the Po, Soča, Krka, Neretva, Drin, Bojana, and Vjosë. In the late 19th century, Austria-Hungary established a geodetic network, whose elevation benchmark was determined on the basis of oscillations of the Adriatic Sea level at the Sartorio pier in Trieste. The benchmark was subsequently retained by Austria, adopted by Yugoslavia, and retained by the states that emerged after its dissolution.

Length of coastlines of the Adriatic Sea
Country	Mainland	Islands	Total	Coastal front*
Croatia	1,777.3	4,058	5,835.3	526
Italy	1,249	23	1,272	926
Albania	396	10	406	265
Montenegro	249	11	260	92
Slovenia	46.6	N/A	46.6	17
Bosnia and Herzegovina	21.2	N/A	21.2	10.5
*The distance between the extreme points of each state's coastline

The Adriatic Sea contains well over a thousand islands and islets, most of them along the eastern coast of the Adriatic, especially in Croatia where 1,246 are found. The number includes islands, islets, and rocks of all sizes, including ones emerging at ebb tide only. The Croatian islands include the largest—Cres and Krk, each covering 405.78 square kilometres (156.67 square miles), and the tallest—Brač, whose peak reaches 780 metres (2,560 feet) above sea level. The Croatian islands include 48 permanently inhabited ones, the most populous among them being Krk and Korčula. Islands found along the western coast of the Adriatic Sea are smaller and less numerous in comparison to those along the opposite coast. The best known Adriatic islands found along the western, Italian, coast are the 117 islands on which the city of Venice is built. The northern shore of the Greek island of Corfu also lies in the Adriatic sea, as defined by the IHO. The IHO boundary places a few of smaller Greek islands northwest of Corfu in the Adriatic Sea.

Adriatic Sea (Croatia)

Bathymetry

The North Adriatic basin, extending between Venice and Trieste towards a line connecting Ancona and Zadar, is only 15 metres (49 feet) deep at its north-western end, and it gradually deepens towards the south-east. The Middle Adriatic basin extends south of the Ancona–Zadar line, as the 270 m (890 ft) deep Middle Adriatic Pit (also called the Pomo Depression or the Jabuka Pit). The 170 m (560 ft) deep Palagruža Sill is south of the Middle Adriatic Pit, separating it from the 1,200 m (3,900 ft) deep South Adriatic Pit and the Middle Adriatic basin from the South Adriatic Basin. Further on to the south, the sea floor rises to 780 m (2,560 ft) to form Otranto Sill at the boundary to the Ionian Sea. Transversally, the Adriatic Sea is also asymmetric as the Apennine peninsula coast is relatively smooth with very few islands and the promontory of Monte Conero and the Gargano Promontory as the only significant protrusions into the sea. On the other hand, the Balkan peninsula coast is rugged with numerous islands, especially in Croatia. The ruggedness of the coast is exacerbated by the proximity of the Dinaric Alps to the coast, in contrast to the opposite, Italian coast, where the Apennine Mountains are further away from the shoreline. The average depth of the Adriatic Sea is 252 metres (827 feet), while its maximum depth is 1,233 metres (4,045 feet). Still, the North Adriatic basin rarely exceeds the depth of 100 metres (330 feet).

Hydrology

Currents and salinity on cross-sections of the East (A) and the West (B) Adriatic

The dynamics of the coastal waters are determined by the asymmetric coasts and the inflow of the Mediterranean seawater through the Straits of Otranto and further on along the eastern coast. The smooth Italian coast, with very few protrusions and no major islands, allows the smooth flow of the Western Adriatic Current, while the coastal currents on the opposite shore are far more complex, because of the jagged shoreline, several large islands and the proximity of the Dinaric Alps to the shore. The latter produces significant temperature variations between the sea and the hinterland, which leads to the creation of local jets. The tidal movement is slight, normally remaining below 30 centimetres (12 inches). The amphidromic point is at the mid-width east of Ancona.

The normal tide levels are known to increase abnormally in a conductive environment, leading to coastal flooding, most famously known in Italy, especially Venice, as acqua alta. They can exceed normal tide levels by more than 140 centimetres (55 inches), with the highest tide level of 194 cm (76 in) observed on 4 November 1966. Such flooding is caused by a combination of factors, including the alignment of the Sun and the Moon, the geometric shape of the basin, which amplifies or reduces the astronomical component, and meteorological factors such as atmospheric pressure and winds. Also, the long and narrow rectangular shape of the Adriatic Sea is the source of an oscillating water motion—seiche along the basin's minor axis Finally, Venice is increasingly vulnerable to flooding because of subsidence of the coastal area soil. Such floods have also been observed elsewhere in the Adriatic Sea, and have been recorded in recent years in the towns of Koper, Zadar and Šibenik as well.

A submarine spring near Omiš, observed through rippling of the sea surface

It is estimated that the entire volume of the Adriatic Sea is exchanged through the Strait of Otranto in 3.4±0.4 years, a comparably short period. For instance, approximatey 500 years are necessary to exchange all the water of the Black Sea. This is particularly important as the rivers flowing into the Adriatic discharge up to 5,700 cubic metres per second (200,000 cubic feet per second). That rate of discharge amounts to 0.5% of the total Adriatic Sea volume, or a 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) layer of water each year. The greatest portion of the discharge from any single river comes from the Po (28%), whose average discharge alone is 1,569 cubic metres per second (55,400 cubic feet per second). In terms of the annual discharge in the Mediterranean Sea, the Po is ranked the second, followed by the Neretva and the Drin, which rank as the third and the fourth. Another significant contributor of freshwater to the Adriatic is the submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) through submarine springs (Croatian: vrulja). The SGD is estimated to comprise 29% of the total water flux in the Adriatic. The submarine springs also include the thermal springs, discovered off shore near the town of Izola. The thermal water is rich with hydrogen sulfide, has a temperature of 22 to 29.6 °C (72 to 85 °F), and has enabled the development of specific ecosystems. The inflow of freshwater, representing one third of the freshwater volume flowing into the Mediterranean, gives the Adriatic characteristics of a dilution basin of the Mediterranean Sea.

Temperature and salinity

The surface temperature of the Adriatic sea largely ranges from 22 to 24 °C (72 to 75 °F) in summer, or 12 to 14 °C (54 to 57 °F) in winter, except along the northern part of the western Adriatic coast, where it drops to 9 °C (48 °F). The seasonal temperature variations are attributed to the heat flux exchanged with the atmosphere. The salinity of the Adriatic sea ranges between 38 and 39 PSUs. In shallow coastal areas of the Adriatic, sea ice may appear in particularly cold winters—especially in the Venetian Lagoon, but also in isolated shallow areas as far south as Tisno south of Zadar.

Climate

As in most of the areas in the Mediterranean Basin, the Adriatic Sea and its surrounding landmass enjoy the Mediterranean climate, a variety of the subtropical climate. Since the Adriatic Sea is located in the mid-latitudes, it is characterized by a seasonal variability of the climate. The climate is characterized by warm to hot, dry summers and mild to cool, wet winters. The air temperature fluctuates by about 20 °C (68 °F) during a season. According to the Köppen climate classification, the southern and central Adriatic are classified as hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa), and the northern Adriatic as humid subtropical climate (Cfa) areas. The predominant winter winds are the bora and sirocco (jugo). The bora is significantly conditioned by wind gaps in the Dinaric Alps bringing cold and dry continental air, and it reaches peak speeds in the areas of Trieste, Senj, and Split, with gusts of up to 180 km/h (100 kn; 110 mph). The sirocco brings humid and warm air often carrying Saharan sand and causing rain dust.

Climate characteristics in major Adriatic cities
City	Mean temperature (daily high)				Mean total rainfall
	January		July		January			July
	°C	°F	°C	°F	mm	in	days	mm	in	days
Bari	12.1	53.8	28.4	83.1	50.8	2.00	7.3	27.0	1.06	2.6
Dubrovnik	12.2	54.0	28.3	82.9	95.2	3.75	11.2	24.1	0.95	4.4
Rijeka	8.7	47.7	27.7	81.9	134.9	5.31	11.0	82.0	3.23	9.1
Split	10.2	50.4	29.8	85.6	77.9	3.07	11.1	27.6	1.09	5.6
Venice	5.8	42.4	27.5	81.5	58.1	2.29	6.7	63.1	2.48	5.7
Source:World Meteorological Organization

Population

Most populous urban areas on the Adriatic Sea coast
Bari Venice	Rank	City	Country	Region/County	Population (urban)	Trieste Split
	1	Bari	Italy	Apulia	320,475
	2	Venice	Italy	Veneto	270,884
	3	Trieste	Italy	Friuli-Venezia Giulia	205,535
	4	Split	Croatia	Split-Dalmatia	165,893
	5	Ravenna	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	159,497
	6	Rimini	Italy	Emilia-Romagna	142,579
	7	Rijeka	Croatia	Primorje-Gorski Kotar	127,498
	8	Pescara	Italy	Abruzzo	123,103
	9	Durrës	Albania	Durrës	115,550
	10	Ancona	Italy	Marche	101,210
	Sources: 2011 Croatian census, Italian National Institute of Statistics (2011), Albanian Census 2011

On the coasts and islands of the Adriatic Sea, there are numerous settlements, but few larger cities. Among the largest are Bari, Venice, Trieste, Ravenna, and Rimini in Italy, Split, Rijeka and Zadar in Croatia, Durrës and Vlorë in Albania and Koper in Slovenia. In total, more than 3.5 million people live at the Adriatic coasts.

Coastal management

MOSE Project north of Lido di Venezia

Venice, which was originally built on islands off the coast, is most at risk due to subsidence, but the threat is present in the Po delta as well. The causes are a decrease in sedimentation rate due to loss of sediment behind dams, the deliberate excavation of sand for industrial purposes, agricultural use of water, and removal of ground water.

The sinking of the city slowed after use of the artesian wells was banned in the 1960s, but the city remains threatened by the acqua alta floods. Recent studies suggested that the city is no longer sinking, but a state of alert remains in place. In May 2003, then-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi inaugurated the MOSE project (Italian: Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico), an experimental model for evaluating the performance of inflatable gates. The project proposes laying a series of 79 inflatable pontoons across the sea bed at the three entrances to the Venetian Lagoon. When tides are predicted to rise above 110 centimetres (43 inches), the pontoons will be filled with air and block the incoming water from the Adriatic Sea. This engineering work is due to be completed by 2014.

Geology

Adriatic Microplate boundaries

Geophysical and geological information indicate that the Adriatic Sea and the Po Valley are associated with a microplate that separated from the African Plate—identified as Apulian or Adriatic Plate during the Mesozoic era. The separation began in the Middle and Late Triassic, when limestone began to be deposited in the area. Between the Norian and Late Cretaceous, the Adriatic and Apulia Carbonate Platforms formed as thick series of carbonate sediments (dolomites and limestones), up to 8,000 metres (26,000 feet) deep. Remnants of the former are found in the Adriatic Sea, as well as in the southern Alps and the Dinaric Alps, and remnants of the latter are exhibited as the Gargano Promontory and the Maiella Mountain. In the Eocene and the early Oligocene, the plate moved north and north-east, contributing to the Alpine orogeny, specifically the orogeny of the Dinarides and the Alps. In the Late Oligocene, the motion was reversed and the Apennine Mountains orogeny took place. An unbroken zone of increased seismic activity borders the Adriatic Sea, with a belt of thrust faults generally oriented in the north-east–south-west direction on the east coast and the northeast–southwest normal faults in the Apennines—indicating counterclockwise rotation of the Adriatic. An active 200-kilometre (120 mi) fault was identified to the north-west of Dubrovnik, adding to the Dalmatian islands as the Eurasian Plate slides over the Adriatic microplate. Furthermore, the fault causes the southern tip of the Apennine peninsula to move towards the opposite shore by about 0.4 centimetres (0.16 inches) per year. If that movement continues, the seafloor will be completely consumed and the Adriatic Sea closed off in 50–70 million years. In the Northern Adriatic, the coast of the Gulf of Trieste and western Istria is gradually subsiding, having sunk about 1.5 metres (4 feet 11 inches) in the past two thousand years. In the Middle Adriatic Basin, there is evidence of Permian volcanism observed in area of Komiža on the island of Vis and as volcanic islands of Jabuka and Brusnik. Earthquakes are observed in the region since the earliest historical records. A recent strong earthquake in the region was the 1979 Montenegro earthquake, measuring 7.0 on the Richter magnitude scale. Historical earthquakes in the area include the 1627 Gargano peninsula and the 1667 Dubrovnik earthquakes, followed by strong tsunamis. In the last 600 years, fifteen tsunamis occurred in the Adriatic Sea.

Seafloor sediment

Sediment billowing out from Italy's shore into the Adriatic

All types of seafloor sediments are found in the Adriatic Sea. Comparably shallow seabed of the Northern Adriatic is characterised by relict sand, while muddy bed is typical at depths below 100 metres (330 feet). There are five geomorphological units in the Adriatic: the Northern Adriatic (up to 100 metres (330 feet) deep), the North Adriatic islands area protected against sediments filling it in by outer islands (pre-Holocene karst relief), the Middle Adriatic islands area (large Dalmatian islands), the Middle Adriatic (characterized by the Middle Adriatic Depression) and the Southern Adriatic consisting of a coastal shelf and the Southern Adriatic Depression. Sediments deposited in the Adriatic Sea today generally come from the north-west coast, being carried by the Po, Reno, Adige, Brenta, Tagliamento, Piave and Soča Rivers. Volume of sediments carried from the eastern shore by the Rječina, Zrmanja, Krka, Cetina, Ombla, Dragonja, Mirna, Raša and Neretva Rivers is negligible, because those are largely deposited at the river mouths. The western shores of the Adriatic are largely either alluvial or terraced, whereas the eastern shores are predominantly rocky, except for the southernmost part of the shore located in Albania, which consists of sandy coves and rocky capes.

Coasts

The eastern Adriatic shore is the most indented coastline in the Mediterranean in its Croatian part. The majority of the eastern coast is characterised by a karst topography, developed from the Adriatic Carbonate Platform. Karstification there largely began after the final uplift of the Dinarides in the Oligocene and the Miocene, when carbonate deposits were exposed to atmospheric effects, extending to the level of 120 metres (390 feet) below present sea level, exposed during the Last Glacial Maximum. It is estimated that some karst formations are related to earlier immersions, most notably the Messinian salinity crisis. Similarly, karst developed in Apulia from the Apulian Carbonate Platform.

The largest part of the eastern coast consists of carbonate rocks, while flysch is significantly represented in the Gulf of Trieste coast, especially along Slovenia's coast where the 80 m (260 ft) Strunjan cliff, the highest cliff on the entire Adriatic and the only one of its type on the eastern Adriatic coast, is located, on the Kvarner Gulf coast opposite Krk, and in Dalmatia north of Split. Rocks of the same type are found in Albania, and on the western Adriatic coast.

There are alternations of maritime and alluvial sediments occurring in the Po Valley, at the north-west coast of the Adriatic, as far west as Piacenza, dating to Pleistocene as the sea advanced and receded over the valley. An advance began after the Last Glacial Maximum, which brought the Adriatic to a high point at about 5,500 years ago. Since then, the Po delta had been prograding. The rate of coastal zone progradation between 1000 BC and 1200 AD was 4 metres (13 feet) per year. In the 12th century, the delta advanced at a rate of 25 metres (82 feet) per year. In the 17th century, the delta began to become a human-controlled environment, as excavation of artificial channels started. The channels and new distributaries of the Po have been prograding at rates of 50 metres (160 feet) per year or more since. There are more than 20 other rivers flowing into the Adriatic Sea also forming alluvial coastlines in Italy alone. There are comparably smaller alluvial coasts of the Eastern Adriatic—in deltas of Dragonja, Bojana, and Neretva.

Flora and fauna

The Adriatic Sea is unique unit of the Mediterranean in terms of biogeography, particularly because of numerous endemic species. Croatian National Biodiversity Strategy Action Plan identified more than 7,000 animal and plant species in the Adriatic Sea. The Middle Adriatic basin is especially abundant in endemic plant species, with 535 identified species of green, brown and red algae. Four out of five Mediterranean seagrass species are found in the Adriatic Sea. The most common species are Cymodocea nodosa and Zostera noltii, while Zostera marina and Posidonia oceanica are comparably rare.

A number of rare and threatened species are also found along the eastern coast of the Adriatic, and as it is relatively clearer and less polluted compared to the Western Adriatic coast—in part because the sea currents flow through the Adriatic in counterclockwise direction, thus bringing clearer waters up the Eastern coast and returning as increasingly polluted water down the Western coast. This has significantly contributed to the biodiversity of the countries along the eastern Adriatic coast. The common bottlenose dolphin is common in the Eastern coast waters only. Approximately thirty species of fish are found only in one or two of the countries bordering Adriatic Sea. Those are particularly related to the karst morphology of the coastal or submarine topography. There are 45 subspecies endemic to the Adriatic Sea coast and islands. In the Adriatic Sea, there are at least 410 species and subspecies of fish, representing approximately 70% of Mediterranean taxa, with seven species endemic to the Adriatic. 64 species are considered threatened, largely because of overfishing. Only a small fraction of the fish fauna found in the Adriatic is attributed to recent processes such as Lessepsian migration, cases of escape from mariculture and similar.

Protected areas

Isole Tremiti protected area

Even though marine biodiversity of the Adriatic Sea is relatively high, several marine protected areas were established by some of the countries along its coasts. In Italy, those are Miramare in the Gulf of Trieste, in the Northern Adriatic, Torre del Cerrano and Isole Tremiti in the Middle Adriatic basin and Torre Guaceto in southern Apulia. The Miramare protected area was established in 1986 and covers 30 hectares (74 acres) of coast and 90 hectares (220 acres) of sea. The area encompasses 1.8 kilometres (1.1 miles) of coastline near Miramare promontory in the Gulf of Trieste. The Torre Cerrano protected area was created in 2009, extending 3 nautical miles (5.6 kilometres) into the sea and along 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) of coastline. Various zones of the protected area cover 37 square kilometres (14 square miles) of sea surface only. Isole Tremiti are a protected area since 1989, while the Tremiti islands themselves are a part of the Gargano National Park. The Torre Guaceto protected area, located near Brindisi and Carovigno covers sea surface of 2,227 hectares (5,500 acres) and it is adjacent to Torre Guaceto State Reserve covering 1,114 hectares (2,750 acres) of coast and sharing a 8-kilometre (5.0 mi) coastline with the marine protected area. Furthermore there are 10 Ramsar wetland reserves in Italy located along the Adriatic coast.

Kornati national park

There are seven marine protected areas in Croatia: Brijuni and Lim Canal off coast of Istria peninsula, near Pula and Rovinj respectively, Kornati and Telašćica in the Middle Adriatic basin, near Šibenik, and Lastovo, Bay of Mali Ston (Croatian: Malostonski zaljev) and Mljet in the Southern Dalmatia. Brijuni national park encompasses the 743.3-hectare (1,837-acre) archipelago itself and 2,651.7 hectares (6,552 acres) of surrounding sea. Brijuni became a national park in 1999. Lim Canal, a 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) ria of Pazinčica river. Kornati national park was established in 1980 and it covers approximately 220 square kilometres (85 square miles), including 89 islands and islets. Still, the marine environment encompasses three quarters of the total area, while length of the island shores combined equals 238 kilometres (148 miles). Telašćica is a nature park established on Dugi Otok in 1988. The park covers 69-kilometre (43 mi) coastline, 22.95 square kilometres (8.86 square miles) of land and 44.55 square kilometres (17.20 square miles) of sea. Bay of Mali Ston is located at the border of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, north of Pelješac peninsula. The marine protected are covers 48 square kilometres (19 square miles). Lastovo nature park was established in 2006, and it includes 44 islands and islets, 53 square kilometres (20 square miles) of land and 143 square metres (1,540 square feet) of sea surface. Mljet national park was established in 1960, covering 24-square-kilometre (9.3 sq mi) marine protection area. In addition, there is a Ramsar wetland reserve in Croatia—Neretva River delta.

In Slovenia, the marine and coastal protected nature areas are the Sečovlje Salina Nature Park, the Strunjan Landscape Park, the Škocjan Inlet Nature Reserve, and the Debeli Rtič, the Cape Madona and the Lakes in Fiesa natural monuments. The Sečovlje Salina Nature Park was established in 1990, covers 721 hectares (1,780 acres), and includes four nature reserves. In 1993, the area has been designated a Ramsar site, and is also a site of international importance for waterbird species. The 429 ha (1,060-acre) Strunjan Landscape Park was established in 2004 and comprises two nature reserves. It includes a 4 km (2.5 mi) long cliff, the northernmost Mediterranean salt field and the only Slovenian lagoon system. It is also the northernmost point of growth of some Mediterranean plant species. The Škocjan Inlet Nature Reserve was established in 1998 and covers 122 ha (300 acres). The Debeli Rtič natural monument covers 25 ha (62 acres), the Cape Madona natural monument covers 13 ha (32 acres), and the coastal lake in Fiesa, the only brackish lake in Slovenia, covers 2.5 ha (6.2 acres).

In 2010, Albania established its first marine protection area of the Karaburun-Sazan National Marine Park at the Karaburun Peninsula, where the Adriatic and the Ionian Seas meet. The park covers a total of 12,570 hectares (31,100 acres). Two additional marine protection areas are planned in Albania: Cape of Rodon (Albanian: Kepi i Rodonit) and Porto Palermo. In addition, Albania is home to two Ramsar wetland reserves. Neither Bosnia and Herzegovina nor Montenegro plan to establish any marine protection areas.

History

Name

Etymology of the Adriatic Sea is linked to Etruscan settlement of Adria, itself probably originating from Illyrian word adur meaning water or sea. In classical antiquity, the sea was known as Mare Adriaticum (Mare Hadriaticum, also sometimes simplified to Adria) or, less frequently, as Mare Superum. The two terms were not synonymous, however. Mare Adriaticum generally corresponds to extent of the Adriatic Sea, spanning from the Gulf of Venice to the Strait of Otranto. That boundary became more consistently defined by Roman authors—early Greek sources place boundary between the Adriatic and Ionian seas at various places ranging from adjacent to the Gulf of Venice to the southern tip of Peloponnese, eastern shores of Sicily and western shores of Crete. Mare Superum on the other hand normally encompassed modern Adriatic Sea and the sea off the southern coast of Apennine peninsula, as far as the Strait of Sicily. Another name used in the period was Mare Dalmaticum, applied to waters off coast of Dalmatia or Illyricum.

Early history

Pula Arena, one of the six largest surviving Roman amphitheatres

Settlements along the Adriatic appear in Albania and Dalmatia on the eastern coast dating to between 6100 and 5900 BC, related to the Cardium Pottery Culture. During the Classical Antiquity the shores of the Adriatic were initially inhabited by the Ancient peoples of Italy—among whom the Etruscan civilization becoming the most prominent before rise of the Roman Republic—on the Western Adriatic coast, and by the Illyrians along the Eastern Adriatic coast. Greek colonisation of the Adriatic dates back to the 7th and the 6th century BC when Epidamnus and Apollonia were founded. Greeks soon expanded further north establishing several cities, including Epidaurus, Black Corcyra, Issa and Ancona, with trade established as far North as the Po River delta, where emporion of Adria was founded. Following the Roman intervention and the Illyrian Wars, the Eastern Adriatic shore became a province of the Roman Republic. The initial intervention in 229 BC marked the first time that the Roman navy crossed the Adriatic to launch a military campaign.

Middle Ages

In Early Middle Ages, after the decline of the Roman Empire, coasts of the Adriatic were ruled by Ostrogoths, Lombards, and the Byzantine Empire. The last part of the period saw rise of the Carolingian Empire and subsequent Frankish Kingdom of Italy which controlled the Western coast of the Adriatic Sea, while the Byzantine control of the opposite coast gradually shrunk following Avar and Croatian invasions starting in the 7th century. Republic of Venice was founded in the period, and it later became a significant trading power after receiving Byzantine tax exemption in 1082. The end of the period brought about Holy Roman Empire's control over the Kingdom of Italy which would last until the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, establishment of an independent Kingdom of Croatia, and Byzantine Empire expanded to the Southern Apennine peninsula. Furthermore, the Papal States were carved out in areas around Rome in the 8th century.

Venice was a leading trading power in Europe

High Middle Ages in the Adriatic Sea basin saw further territorial changes, including the Norman conquest of southern Italy ending Byzantine presence on the Apennine peninsula in the 11th and the 12th centuries, and the territory would become the Kingdom of Naples in 1282, and control of a substantial part of the Eastern Adriatic coast by the Kingdom of Hungary after a personal union was established between Croatia and Hungary in 1102. In the period, the Republic of Venice began to expand its territory and influence. In 1202, the Fourth Crusade was diverted to conquer Zadar on behest of Venetians—the first instance of a Crusader force attacking a Catholic city—before proceeding to sack Constantinople. In the century, Venice established itself as one of the leading trading nations. During much of the 12th and the 13th century, Venice and the Republic of Genoa were engaged in Venetian–Genoese Wars ending in War and Battle of Chioggia, removing Geonoese from the Adriatic. Still, the Treaty of Turin of 1381 that ended the war required Venice to renounce claims to Dalmatia, after losing the territory to Hungary in 1358. In the same year, the Republic of Dubrovnik was established a city-state as it escaped Venetian suzerainty. Venice regained Dalmatia in 1409 and held it for nearly four hundred years—reaching the republic's apex of power in the first half of the 15th century. The 15th and the 16th centuries brought about destruction of the Byzantine Empire (1453), expansion of the Ottoman Empire which reached Adriatic shores in present-day Albania and Montenegro, as well as immediate hinterland of Dalmatian coast, defeating the Hungarian and Croatian armies at Krbava (1493) and Mohács (1526). Those defeats spelled the end of an independent Hungarian kingdom, and both Croatian and Hungarian nobility chose Ferdinand I of the House of Habsburg as the new ruler and bringing the Habsburg Monarchy to the shore of Adriatic Sea, where it will remain for nearly four hundred years. The Ottomans and the Venetians fought a series of wars, but until the 17th century, those were not fought in the Adriatic area. The Ottoman raids of the Adriatic coasts were effectively stopped after the Battle of Lepanto (1571) fought south of the Strait of Otranto.

Age of sail

Battle of Lissa, 1811

In 1648, the Holy Roman Empire lost its claim on the Italian lands, formally ending the Kingdom of Italy, however its only outlet on the Adriatic Sea, the Duchy of Ferrara was already lost to the Papal States. The final territorial changes of the 17th century were caused by the Morean or the Sixth Ottoman-Venetian War, when Venice slightly enlarged its possessions in Dalmatia in 1699. In 1797, the Republic of Venice was abolished after French conquest (1797). The Venetian territory was then handed over to Austria and briefly ruled as a part of Archduchy of Austria. The territory was turned back to France after the Peace of Pressburg (1805) when the territory in the Po Valley became an integral part of new Kingdom of Italy. The Kingdom included Romagna province thus removing the Papal State from the Adriatic coast, but Trieste, Istria and Dalmatia were made a separate province of the French Empire—the Illyrian Provinces. The Illyrian Provinces were created in 1809 through the Treaty of Schönbrunn and they represented the end of Venetian rule on the East Adriatic coast, as well as the end of existence of the Republic of Dubrovnik. The Adriatic Sea was a minor theatre of war during the Napoleonic Wars, as the Adriatic campaign of 1807–1814 involved British Royal Navy contesting control of the Adriatic by the combined navies of France, Italy and Kingdom of Naples. During the campaign, the Royal Navy occupied Vis and established its base there in Port St. George. The campaign reached its climax in the Battle of Lissa in 1811, and ended in British troops and Austrian army seizing the Eastern Adriatic coast cities from the French. Days before the battle of Waterloo, the Congress of Vienna awarded the Illyrian Provinces spanning from the Gulf of Trieste to the Bay of Kotor to Austria. The Congress of Vienna also created the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, encompassing the city of Venice, surrounding coast and substantial hinterland—ruled by Austria. In the south of the Apennine peninsula, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was formed in 1816 through a union of the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily.

From ironclads to dreadnoughts

Battle of Lissa, 1866

Process of Italian unification culminated in the Second Italian War of Independence resulting in Kingdom of Sardinia annexing all territories along the Western Adriatic coast south of Venetia in 1860, and establishment of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 in its place. The Kingdom of Italy expanded in 1866. It annexed Venetia, but Regia Marina was defeated in the Adriatic near Vis. Following the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 and Croatian–Hungarian Settlement of 1868, control of much of the Eastern Adriatic coast was redefined. Cisleithanian part of the Austria-Hungary spanned from Austrian Littoral to the Bay of Kotor, with exception of the Croatian Littoral. A Corpus separatum formed in 1779 and containing the city of Rijeka directly subjected to the Kingdom of Hungary was confirmed and the rest was a part of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia, which in turn was also in the Transleithanian part of the dual monarchy. Length of the Adriatic coastline controlled by the Ottoman Empire shrunk in 1878 when the Congress of Berlin recognised independence of the Principality of Montenegro controlling the coast south of Bay of Kotor to Bojana River. The Ottoman Empire was completely removed from the Adriatic following the First Balkan War and consequent Treaty of London of 1913 which established independent Albania.

SMS Novara after Battle of the Strait of Otranto, 1917

World War I Adriatic Campaign was largely limited to attempts of blockade of the sea by the Allies and Central Powers' attempts to break it. Italy joined the Allies in 1915 after the Treaty of London, signed on 26 April 1915, promised it acquisition of the Austrian Littoral, Northern Dalmatia, port of Vlorë, most East Adriatic islands and establishment of a protectorate in Albania. The treaty provided the basis for all following divisions between Italy and Yugoslavia. In 1918, Montenegrin national assembly voted to form a union with the Kingdom of Serbia, giving the latter access to the Adriatic. Another short-lived, unrecognized state established in 1918 was the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs out of parts of Austria-Hungary, comprising most of the coastline of the former monarchy. Later that year, the two formed the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes—subsequently renamed to Yugoslavia. Proponents of the new union in the Parliament of Croatia at the time saw the move as a defence against Italian expansionism and provisions of the Treaty of London. The treaty was largely disregarded by the Britain and France because of conflicting promises made to Serbia and perceived lack of Italian contribution to the war effort outside Italy itself. The Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye of 1919 did transfer the Austrian Littoral and Istria to Italy, but awarded Dalmatia to Yugoslavia. Following the war, a private force of demobilized Italian soldiers seized Rijeka and set up Italian Regency of Carnaro, seen as harbinger of Fascism, in order to force recognition of Italian claim to the city. After sixteen months of its existence, the Treaty of Rapallo of 1920 redefined Italian–Yugoslav borders, inter alia transferring Zadar and islands of Cres, Lastovo and Palagruža to Italy, securing the island of Krk for Yugoslavia and establishing the Free State of Fiume. The Free State of Fiume was abolished in 1924 by the Treaty of Rome which awarded Rijeka to Italy and Sušak to Yugoslavia.

Modern era

Boundary between Free Territory of Trieste and Italy

In the World War II, the Adriatic saw limited naval action starting with Italian invasion of Albania and Axis Invasion of Yugoslavia. The latter resulted in annexation of a large part of Dalmatia and nearly all East Adriatic islands to Italy and establishment of puppet states of Independent State of Croatia and Kingdom of Montenegro controlling the remainder of former Yugoslav Adriatic coast. In 1947, after the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces and the end of the war, Italy, now a republic, and Allies of World War II signed Treaty of Peace with Italy reversing all wartime annexations, transferring islands of Cres, Lastovo and Palagruža, the cities of Zadar and Rijeka, Istria and most of Slovenian Littoral to communist Yugoslavia, guaranteeing independence of Albania and carving out Free Territory of Trieste (FTT) as a city-state. The FTT was partitioned in 1954 as Trieste itself and area to the North of it were placed under Italian and the rest under Yugoslav control. The arrangement was made permanent by the Treaty of Osimo in 1975.

During the Cold War, the Adriatic Sea became the southern flank of the Iron Curtain as Italy allied itself with NATO, while the Warsaw Pact established bases in Albania. After the fall of communism, Yugoslavia broke apart as Slovenia and Croatia declared independence in 1991, and Bosnia and Herzegovina followed in 1992, while Montenegro remained in a federation with Serbia, subsequently renamed to Serbia and Montenegro. The Croatian War of Independence that ensued included limited naval engagement and maritime blockade of Croatian coast by the Yugoslav Navy, resulting in the Battle of the Dalmatian channels and withdrawal of Yugoslav vessels. Montenegro declared its independence in 2006, ending Yugoslav control of any portion of the Adriatic coast. The period also saw Adriatic Sea as the theatre of several NATO operations, including blockade of Yugoslavia, intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and bombing of Yugoslavia.

Boundaries

Signing ceremony of the Treaty of Osimo, 10 November 1975

Italy and Yugoslavia defined their delimitation of the continental shelf in the Adriatic Sea in 1968, with an additional agreement on the boundary in the Gulf of Trieste signed in 1975 pursuant to the Treaty of Osimo. The boundary agreed in 1968 extends 353 nautical miles (654 kilometres; 406 miles) and consists of 43 points connected by straight lines or circular arc segments. The boundary agreed upon in 1975 consists of 5 points, extending from an end point of the 1968 line. All successor states of the former Yugoslavia accepted the agreements. In the southernmost areas of the Adriatic the border was not determined in order to avoid prejudicing location of tripoint with the Albanian continental shelf border, which remains undefined. Prior to breakup of Yugoslavia, Albania, Italy and Yugoslavia initially proclaimed 15-nautical-mile (28 km; 17 mi) territorial waters, subsequently reduced to 12 nautical miles (22 kilometres; 14 miles) and all sides adopted baseline systems. Most of these were introduced in 1970s. Albania and Italy determined their border at the sea in 1992 on equidistance principle. Following accession of Croatia to the EU, the Adriatic is expected to become an internal sea of the EU.

Adriatic Euroregion

Adriatic Euroregion was established in Pula in 2006 to promote trans-regional and trans-national cooperation in the Adriatic Sea area, representing an Adriatic framework to help resolve issues of regional importance. The Adriatic Euroregion consists of 23 members—Apulia, Molise, Abruzzo, Marche, Emilia-Romagna, Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia regions of Italy, municipality of Izola in Slovenia, Istria, Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Lika-Senj, Zadar, Šibenik-Knin, Split-Dalmatia and Dubrovnik-Neretva counties of Croatia, Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of Bosnia and Herzegovina, municipalities of Kotor and Tivat in Montenegro, Fier, Vlorë, Tirana, Shkodër, Durrës and Lezhë counties of Albania and Greek prefectures of Thesprotia and Corfu.

Disputes

The former Yugoslav republics had their land borders defined, but the exact course has not been agreed upon by the successor states, which has fundamental implications for the construction of the maritime boundaries and the maritime borders were not defined at all in the time of Yugoslavia. In addition, the maritime boundary between Albania and Montenegro was not defined before the 1990s. Croatia and Slovenia started negotiations in 1992 but failed to agree, resulting in a dispute which was referred to arbitration in 2009. Croatia also declared the Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone (ZERP) extending to the continental shelf boundary, but its application to the EU member states was suspended pending definition of the borders. In October 2005, Slovenia declared its protective ecological and continental zone. Still the dispute causes no major practical problems. Maritime boundary between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia was formally settled in 1999, but few issues in dispute—Klek peninsula and two islets in the border area. Croatia–Montenegro maritime boundary is disputed in the Bay of Kotor, at the Prevlaka peninsula. This dispute had been exacerbated by the occupation of the peninsula by the Yugoslav People's Army and later by FR Yugoslav Army, which in turn was replaced by a United Nations observer mission that lasted until 2002. Croatia took over the area as an agreement was made that allowed Montenegrin presence in Croatian waters in the bay, and the dispute proved far less contentious since the independence of Montenegro (in 2006).

Economy

Fishing

The Adriatic Sea fisheries production varies among countries in the basin. In 2000, nominal total landings of all Adriatic fisheries reached 110 thoushand tonnes. The largest volume of the fisheries production is achieved in Italy, where the total production volume in 2003 stood at 472 thousand tonnes for human consumption and 15 thousand tonnes for other purposes. 28.8% of that volume are landings in the Northern and central Adriatic, and 24.5% in Apulia—Southern Adriatic and Ionian Sea. Italian fisheries, including those operating in outside the Adriatic, employ 60,700 in the primary sector, including aquaculture which comprises 40% of the total fisheries production. Gross value of the total fisheries output in 2002 was 1.9 billion US$.

In 2006, total Croatian fisheries production volume was 37.8 thousand tonnes of catch and 14.2 thousand tonnes in marine aquaculture. Croatian fisheries, employ approximately 20,000. Marine capture catch in 2006 in Croatian waters consisted of sardines (44.8%), anchovies (31.3%), tunas (2.7%), other pelagic fish (4.8%), hake (2.4%), mullet (2.1%), other demersal fish (8.3%), crustaceans (largely lobster and Nephrops norvegicus) (0.8%), shellfish (largely oysters and mussels) (0.3%), cuttlefish (0.6%), squids (0.2%) and octopuses and other cephalopods (1.6%). Croatian marine aquaculture production consists of tuna (47.2%), oysters and mussels (28.2% combined) and bass and bream (24.6% combined).

In 2006, Albanian fisheries production amounted to 7,699 tonnes, including 1,970 tonnes of aquaculture production. At the same time, Slovenian fisheries produced a total of 2,500 tonnes with 55% of the production volume originating in aquaculture, representing the highest ratio in the Adriatic. Finally, Montenegrin fisheries production stood at 911 tonnes in 2006, with all but 11 tonnes coming from capture production.

Tourism

Dubrovnik is a major tourist destination in Croatia

Rimini is a major seaside tourist resort in Italy

Portorož is the largest seaside tourist centre in Slovenia

Countries bordering the Adriatic Sea are significant tourist destinations. The largest number of tourist overnight stays and the most numerous tourist accommodation facilities are recorded in Italy, especially in Veneto region. Veneto is followed by Emilia-Romagna region and by Adriatic Croatia counties. The Croatian tourist facilities are further augmented by 21 thousand nautical ports and moorings, as nautical tourists are attracted to various types of protected areas. All countries along the Adriatic Sea coasts, except Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina take part in the Blue Flag beach certification programme of the Foundation for Environmental Education for beaches and marinas meeting strict quality standards including environmental protection, water quality, safety and services criteria. As of January 2012, the Blue Flag is awarded to 103 Italian Adriatic beaches and 29 marinas, 116 Croatian beaches and 19 marinas, 7 Slovenian beaches and 2 marinas, and 16 Montenegrin beaches.

Tourism is also a significant source of income for those countries, especially so in Croatia and Montenegro where the tourist income generated along the Adriatic coast represents the bulk of tourism income. Direct contribution of travel and tourism to Croatian GDP stands at 5.1% in 2011, with total contribution of the industry estimated at 12.8% of the national GDP, and in case of Montenegro, the direct contribution of tourism to national GDP is 8.1%, with the total contribution to economy at 17.2% of Montenegrin GDP. Tourism in Adriatic Croatia is exhibiting greater growth recently, compared to the other regions around the Adriatic Sea.

Tourism in the Adriatic Sea area
Country	Region	CAF beds*	Hotel beds	Overnight Stays
Albania	N/A	?	?	2,302,899
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Neum municipality	c. 6,000	1,810	280,000
Croatia	Adriatic Croatia	411,722	137,561	34,915,552
Italy	Friuli-Venezia Giulia	152,847	40,921	8,656,077
	Veneto	692,987	209,700	60,820,308
	Emilia-Romagna	440,999	298,332	37,477,880
	Marche	193,965	66,921	10,728,507
	Abruzzo	108,747	50,987	33,716,112
	Molise	11,711	6,383	7,306,951
	Apulia**	238,972	90,618	12,982,987
Montenegro	N/A	40,427	25,916	7,964,893
Slovenia	Seaside municipalities	24,080	9,330	1,981,141
*Beds in collective accommodation facilities, include "Hotel beds" figure also shown separately **Includes both Adriatic and Ionian sea coasts

Transport

Port of Trieste, the largest cargo port in the Adriatic

Port of Rijeka, the largest cargo port in Croatia

Port of Durrës

There are 19 major Adriatic Sea ports in four different countries, each handling more than a million tonnes of cargo per year. The largest cargo ports among them are the Port of Trieste—the largest Adriatic cargo port in Italy, the Port of Venice, the Port of Ravenna, Port of Koper—the largest Slovenian port, Port of Rijeka &mdash ;the largest Croatian cargo port, and the Port of Brindisi. The largest passenger ports in the Adriatic are the Port of Split—the largest Croatian passenger port, and ports in Ancona — the largest Italian passenger seaport in the Adriatic, Bari and Venice. The largest seaport in Montenegro is the Port of Bar. In 2010, Norhtern Adriatic seaports of Trieste, Venice, Ravenna, Koper and Rijeka founded the North Adriatic Ports Association in order to position themselves more favourably in transport systems of the EU.

Major Adriatic ports*, annual transport volume
Port	Country, Region/County	Cargo (tonnes)	Passengers
Ancona	Italy, Marche	10,573,000	1,483,000
Bari	Italy, Apulia	3,197,000	1,392,000
Barletta	Italy, Apulia	1,390,000	N/A
Brindisi	Italy, Apulia	10,708,000	469,000
Chioggia	Italy, Veneto	2,990,000	N/A
Durrës	Albania, Durrës	3,441,000	770,000
Koper	Slovenia, Slovenian Istria	17,051,000	100,300
Manfredonia	Italy, Apulia	1,277,000	N/A
Monfalcone	Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia	4,544,000	N/A
Ortona	Italy, Abruzzo	1,340,000	N/A
Ploče	Croatia, Dubrovnik-Neretva	5,104,000	146,000
Porto Nogaro	Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia	1,475,000	N/A
Rabac	Croatia, Istria	1,090,000	669,000
Ravenna	Italy, Emilia-Romagna	27,008,000	N/A
Rijeka	Croatia, Primorje-Gorski Kotar	15,441,000	219,800
Split	Croatia, Split-Dalmatia	2,745,000	3,979,000
Trieste	Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia	39,833,000	N/A
Venice	Italy, Veneto	32,042,000	1,097,000
*Ports handling more than a million tonnes of cargo or serving more than a million passengers per year Sources: National Institute of Statistics (2010 data, Italian ports, Port of Ancona includes Ancona and Falconara Marittima; passenger traffic below 200,000 is not reported), Croatian Bureau of Statistics (2008 data, Croatian ports, note: Port of Rijeka includes Rijeka, Bakar, Bršica and Omišalj terminals; Port of Ploče includes Ploče and Metković terminals), Durrës' Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Albania (2007 data, Port of Durrës), SEOnet (2011 data, Port of Koper)

Oil and gas

Natural gas is produced through several projects, including a joint venture started by Eni and INA companies which operates two platforms—one of them is in Croatian waters and draws gas from six wells, and the other one, which started operating in 2010, is located in Italian waters. The Adriatic gas fields were discovered in the 1970s, but their development commenced in 1996. In 2008, INA produced 14.58 million BOE per day of gas. Approximately a hundred offshore platforms are located in Emilia-Romagna region, and seventeen in the Northern Adriatic. Eni estimated its concessions in the Adriatic Sea to hold at least 40,000,000,000 cubic metres (1.4×10¹² cubic feet) of natural gas, adding that they may even reach 100,000,000,000 cubic metres (3.5×10¹² cubic feet). INA estimates, on the other hand, are 50% lower than those supplied by Eni. Oil was discovered in the Northern Adriatic, at a depth of approximately 5,400 metres (17,700 feet). The discovery was assessed as not viable because of its location, depth and quality. Those gas and oil reserves are a part of the Po basin Province of Northern Italy and the Northern Mediterranean Sea.

In 2000s, investigation works aimed at discovering gas and oil reserves in Middle Adriatic and Southern Adriatic basins intensified, and by the end of the decade, oil and natural gas reserves were discovered Southeast of Bari and Brindisi—Rovesti and Giove oil discoveries. Surveys indicate reserves of 3 billion barrels of oil in place and 2 trillion cubic feet of gas in place. The discovery was followed by start of further surveys off Croatian coast. In January 2012, INA commenced prospecting for oil off Dubrovnik, marking resumption of oil exploration along the Eastern Adriatic coast after surveys commenced in late 1980s around the island of Brač were cancelled because of the war. Montenegro is also expected to look for oil off its coast. As of January 2012, only 200 exploration wells were sunk off Croatian coast, with all but 30 executed in the Northern Adriatic basin.

See also

• Mediterranean Sea

References

Bibliography

• Benoit Cushman-Roisin; Miroslav Gačić; Pierre-Marie Poulain (2001). Physical oceanography of the Adriatic Sea. Springer. ISBN 9781402002250. http://books.google.com/books?id=OFwkVgQNHlsC. Retrieved 26 January 2012. 
• John Julius Norwich (1997). A short history of Byzantium. Knopf. ISBN 9780679772699. http://books.google.com/books?id=FkUmAQAAMAAJ. Retrieved 31 January 2012. 
• Jozo Tomasevich (2001). War and revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941-1945. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804736152. http://books.google.com/books?id=fqUSGevFe5MC. Retrieved 1 February 2012. 

External links

• Region 5 - Western Africa, Mediterranean, Black Sea Nautical Charts from National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
• Nautical Chart 54131 (Adriatic Sea) from National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency