Spain is recommending the creation of a “whale highway” to help dolphins, whales and other marine species avoid the hazards involved with oil drilling.
A safe migration route will be plotted on Spain’s east Mediterranean coast between Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands.
Should the plan for the corridor proceed, oil drilling will be banned in the area.
The Environment Ministry is pushing for the route to be designated a "Specially Protected Zone of Mediterranean Importance" by the Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Mediterranean.
That convention adopted by countries bordering the Mediterranean to halt pollution in the sea.
"This is a clear warning to companies that want to carry out exploratory oil drilling in the area of the environmental unfeasibility of their projects," said Carlos Bravo, a coordinator of Alianza Mar Blava.
The alliance is composed of a number of groups, including the regional government of the Balearic Islands, which is against exploratory drilling in the area.
The plan has the backing of the European Commission.
The next meeting of the Barcelona Convention will debate the question.
The Mediterranean is home to many whale species, including sperm whales, pilot whales and fin whales. Killer whales have been sighted sporadically.
