The impact of the bivalve industry and associated environmental risks are poorly understood in Portugal. The project will characterise wild and aquaculture bivalve genetic structure and diversity, disease susceptibility and environmental risks. Management strategies for growth of environmentally compatible bivalve aquaculture will be established for three iconic and economically important species, clams (Ruditapes decussatus and Ruditapes philippinarum), mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) and oysters (Magallana gigas).

BivalvePlus aims to provide a holistic assessment of the status of the bivalve industry in the Algarve region, comparing production in the Ria Formosa with production in Sagres, but also with other production sites in Portugal (Setúbal and Aveiro), so as to support and promote nationally the sustainable growth of the bivalve industry so it can exploit growing market opportunities.

The goal is to ensure the effective utilization of wild bivalve resources, reduce ecological depletion, assess the ability of existing population structures to adapt to climate change, and to develop and provide tools for monitoring and risk assessment linked to bivalve health and resilience and in this way support the economic development of this industry and preserve the unique biodiversity and ecosystems of Portugal, while promoting blue economy.

The project goals are ambitious and will advance the state of the art of bivalve population genetics, genomics, resilience, pathogens, and wild and aquaculture bivalves. The main goals are to:

• Establish guidelines for management of sustainable production in bivalve farming
• Identify the main biological and non-biological risks associated with production
• Make available for industry state of the art tools for real time monitoring of health status, quality, and safety of commercially important bivalves