Formal Adoption and Final Products 30 Years of Transnational Cooperaton

Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation

1

Harald Marencic Common Wadden Sea Secretariat Wilhelmshaven, Germany

The Wadden Sea

2

• 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 Stock

Norbert Hecker

Martin 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 Management Framework

WADDEN SEA BOARDSenior Officials Environmental Ministries, 

Advisors (Wadden Sea Forum)2‐times a years

TASK GROUPSManagement, Climate, Shipping, World 

Heritage, Tourism, Monitoring Expert Groups

MINISTERIAL COUNCILMinisters  of Environment (every 3  years)

Netherlands Germany Denmark

Common  W

addenSea Secretariat

Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan – Formal Adoption

Strategic „Ecological Targets“ for habitats and species (Trilateral Expert Group), adopted 1994

Draft Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan (Task Group Management)

National public hearings (State and provincial authorities, National Park Advisory Boards)

Final draft Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan (Senior Officials of national ministries)

Adoption Wadden Sea Plan (Ministerial Conference 1997, Update 2010)

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 aliens species,

• Enhance International Cooperation, especially on protection of migrating species (bird flyway) and biodiversity

International Cooperation: Bird Flyway

Awareness - Identity - Pride

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