30 Years of Dutch-German- Danish Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation 1 Harald Marencic Common Wadden Sea Secretariat Wilhelmshaven, Germany
Dec 02, 2014
30 Years of Dutch-German-Danish Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea
Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation
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Harald Marencic Common Wadden Sea Secretariat Wilhelmshaven, Germany
The Wadden Sea
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• Largest unbroken system of tidal flats world wide
• Highly productive ecosystem with natural dynamics
• 10-12 mill. migratory birds pass through the area
• Shared by 3 countries – and well protected
The Netherlands
Germany
Denmark
Martin StockNorbert HeckerMartin Stock
Martin Stock
Jan van de Kam
Outstanding Universal Value (OUV)1. Criteria OUV:viii: geology, ix: ecological processes, x: biodiversity
2. Integrity:10,000 km² represents all habitats, species and processes
3. Appropriate Protection and ManagementNational Parks/nature reserves, Wadden Sea Plan, Monitoring (TMAP)
The Wadden Sea is an area where people live, work and recreate.
About 75,000 inhabitants in the Wadden Sea Cooperation Area (on islands).About 3.7 million inhabitants on the mainland in the Wadden Sea Region
The Wadden Sea Region
Social and Economic Development
Harbours• Hamburg: 149 mill. tons/y• Bremerhaven: 74 mill. tons/y• Wilhelmshaven: 40 mill. tons/y• Others (Den Helder, Harlingen,
Delfzijl/Eeemshaven, Emden, Brake, Brunsbüttel, Esbjerg): 24 mill. tons/y
Fishery• About 500 ships with 1300 employees,
high local economic relevance;• Landings: 160,000 tons, 110 Mill. EuroAgriculture• 44,500 farms• 1,800 ha agricultural land in use• 55,000 employees
Sources: WSF 2004, QSR 2004 & 2009
Tourism in the Wadden Sea Region
• 10 million tourists per year• About 70 million overnight
stays• 30 – 40 million day trippers
every year
Turnover per year:2.8 – 5.3 Billion Euro
Social and Economic Development
Sources: QSR 2004 & 2009
Wadden Sea Cooperation – The History
1970s Pollution, eutrophication, habitat degradationDecline of bird and marine mammal populations
1980sLarge scale protection schemes and national parks – Wadden Sea coast under protection
1990sEcosystem based management and monitoring (TMAP), integrated policies
2010Adaptation to climate change
2030Main issue ?
Conservation Area11,000 km²
Denmark: 1983 Statutory Order Nature and Wildlife Reserve (From 2010: National Park)
Germany: Federal Nature Protection Law, 1986 National Park Laws (3 Federal States)
The Netherlands: 1980 Nature Protection Act,Planning Decree Wadden Sea
National Conservation Regimes
Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation
Guiding principle: “to achieve, as far as possible, a natural and sustainable ecosystem in which natural processes proceed in an undisturbed way”.
1987 Common Wadden Sea Secretariat
1997/2010 Wadden Sea Plan
2009 UNESCO World Heritage Site
1993 Monitoring Programme TMAP
Trilateral Cooperation Area14,700 km²
1982/2010 Joint Declaration on the Protection of the Wadden Sea
Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan
Vision
Guiding Principle and Management Principles and Integrated Ecosystem Management
Sustainable development, communication, information and education
Overarching themes: Climate change, alien species, shipping safety
Ecological Targets and Trilateral Policy and Management
A Wadden Sea which is a unique, natural and dynamic ecosystem with characteristic biodiversity, vast open landscapes and rich cultural heritage, enjoyed by all, and delivering benefits in a sustainable way to present and future generations.
Regulations on :• Agriculture • Fishery• Hunting• Dredging and dumping• Sand and clay extraction• Tourism• Shipping• Energy (wind, gas, oil)• others
Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan
Ecological Targets:• Landscape and
Culture• Water and Sediment• Salt Marshes• Tidal Area (tidal flats
and subtidal gullies)• Beaches and Dunes• Estuaries• Offshore Zone• Birds • Marine Mammals• Fish
1. Natural dynamic situation in the tidal area.
2. An increased area of geomorphological and biologically undisturbed tidal flats and subtidal areas.
3. A natural size, distribution and development of natural mussel beds, Sabellaria reefs and seagras fields.
4. Viable stocks and natural reproduction capacity of marine mammals, conservation of habitat quality,
5. Numbers and distribution of birds, natural breeding success, connectivity between habitats, as well as breeding, feeding, moulting and roosting sites,
6. Fish: Viable stocks and natural reproduction, occurrence and abundance, habitat quality, connectivity
Tidal Area – “Ecological Targets”
1. Coastal defense: enlargement of dikes outside, sand nourishment instead of dikes
2. Shipping (PSSA), harbors and industry (no new structures)3. Closure for wind turbines (but: cables, external), 4. No mineral extraction,
5. No mussel fishery on stable beds (high biodiv), food reservation policy for birds
6. Tourism: visitor guidance system, spatial or temporal closure of sensitive habitats
7. Site protection, disturbance (farming, wind energy, air traffic, military activities), pollution reduction
Tidal Area – Trilateral Policy and Management
Management Mussel Fishery
Management of Tourism: German National Parks
Trilateral Wadden Sea PlanIntroducing and applying information systems (visitor guidance), Temporal and spatial zoning and/or closure of ecologically most sensitive areas such as bird breeding and moulting areas.
Schleswig-Holstein NP
Lower Saxony NP
Quality Status Report 2009
Nutrient inputs decreased. But: the Wadden Sea is still a “eutrophication problem area”
Source: Beusekom et al., 2009 (QSR 2009)
N P
Quality Status Report 2009
Recovery of seagrass
Source: Reise et al. 2009
Quality Status Report 2009Harbour Seal population is doing well
Source: Reijnders et al. 2009
Quality Status Report 2009
The numbers of many migratory birds have improved
8 species show strong or moderate increases, 12 species are stable, and 14 species are decreasing.
Compared to 2004, there has been some improvement in the development for severalspecies.
Source: Laursen et al. 2009
Challenges
• Adaptation to climate changes and accelerated sea level rise
• Protection and restoration of natural dynamics, •geo-morpholgical processes (sediment transport), •habitat dynamics (dune dynamics, restoration of estuaries),•migration of species (fish, birds)
• Closing of gaps in knowledge on subtidal and offshore habitats and species (ecology, monitoring, management)
• Reduction of external impacts, such as input of contaminants and nutrients, litter, shipping and invasion of alien species,
• Enhance International Cooperation, especially on protection of migrating species (bird flyway) and biodiversity
International Cooperation: Bird Flyway
Awareness - Identity - Pride
Sustainable Tourism
• EU Interreg IVB project PROWAD – “Protect and Prosper”• Total budget 1.3 Mio Euro• Ministries, National Park Agencies, WWF, Tourism and Marketing
Organizations• Development of a consistent sustainable tourism strategy for the
entire Wadden Sea in a participatory approach (2012)• Implementation Action Plan (2013 – 2014) Task Group
Sustainable Tourism Strategy
Summary
• Management must be done at an ecosystem level (integration of the total system of the habitat) – functional delimitation instead administrational borders.
• Scientific information and monitoring has been critical for the success of protection in the Wadden Sea – long term data series
• Communication, education and public awareness supports conservation (identity and pride of locals)
• International Cooperation (bird flyway, scientific and management aspects, global importance of tidal flats)
• Nature conservation can be a driver for socio-economic development: World Heritage and sustainable tourism