Cave Monitoring Network and Long-Term Ecological Research in Portugal

This document describes the Portuguese Cave Monitoring Network (CaveNet), a scientific infrastructure established within the framework of the EcoSub Chair. CaveNet provides an integrated framework for the quantitative monitoring of caves in Portugal, encompassing data collection, validation, processing and storage. The document presents the architecture and objectives of the infrastructure, highlights its scientific and ecological relevance and characterises the sites selected for Long-Term Ecological Research in Portuguese caves (LTER-Grutas). These sites host monitoring stations whose long-term environmental and ecological data are integrated into CaveNet.

The document further discusses the advantages of an integrated cave monitoring network and its direct applicability to the assessment and reporting of the conservation status of habitat type 8310 - Caves not open to the public - under the Natura 2000 framework, as well as to the implementation of the Nature Restoration Regulation. In addition, CaveNet has significant socio-economic value, particularly in supporting the assessment and management of occupational risks associated with exposure to environmental hazards during underground work.

In the longer term, the infrastructure will enable innovative research on carbon fluxes across the atmosphere–soil–subsoil–groundwater continuum, subsurface radioactivity emissions and the implications of subterranean processes for ecosystem services. These research and monitoring activities are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the One Health approach.

At a global scale, CaveNet provides a unique platform for investigating the complex ecological interactions occurring at the surface–subterranean interface. By integrating standardised, long-term observations across multiple cave systems, the network will contribute to a better understanding of subterranean ecosystems, their environmental dynamics and their responses to natural and anthropogenic pressures. It will also provide a robust scientific basis for conservation, environmental assessment, risk management and the sustainable management of subterranean environments.