Loano is located within the Pelagos Cetacean Sanctuary, a marine protected area stretching between Italy, France and the Principality of Monaco, known for its massive presence of cetaceans. Established in 1999 through collaboration between Liguria, Tuscany, Sardinia, the French Riviera, Corsica and Monaco, the Sanctuary was ratified in Italy by Law No. 391 of 2001 and is recognized as a Special Protection Area by the Barcelona Convention.
The waters of the Sanctuary, which cover about 87,500 km², offer ideal environmental conditions for cetaceans such as whales, stenellas, bottlenose and common dolphins, as well as grampuses, sperm whales, zephys, pilot whales and the occasional minke whale. Here they find both necessary food and conditions for breeding.
