Just a quik note regarding this the wipe out of shells
 
    Has any one here of a protected area (in this case the natural
reserve of Ria Formosa in the Algarve, South of Portugal) where fishing
activity is at it4s highist (from gill net4s to tanglling net4s, traps,
hooks, hand dredges, sport fishing, etc..); where polution from local
intustries contaminat the waters every day (in some areas you can
analise a Ph 2 of the water); construction bulding is spoted every where
(some islands are covered with houses just used in the summer seasone);
the international airport is built just in the center of the reserve
(imagen all the poluting gases relesed from there engines ..); golf
courses of 5 star resorts contaminate the reserves waters with all the
quimcals they use to keep the grass green and free of plage; Well could
go on and on and one... The point is, where do I, the shell collector,
fit in ??? Yes, Yes, Yes,  me and my small plastic collecting bags are
the ones responsible for the decline of the Mollusk populations of this
area, I have no dought on that ......
 
 
    Regards to all,
 
    Carlos (Portugal)