Trilateral Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea

The governments in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands work together on the policy with respect to protection of the wadden region. The red line in the map shows which area is involved. The 'trilateral cooperative area' (or in short the Wadden Sea area) contains the area from Den Helder in the Netherlands to Blivandshuk in Denmark. The northern and western border is an offshore zone three nautical miles from the baseline as fixed nationally; where the Conservation Area exceeds the three nautical miles, the bounadary is the offshore boundaries of the Conservation Area. On the mainland side (south/east), the border is the area seaward of the main dike; or where the main dike is absent, the spring-high-tide-water line; and the brackish-water limit by river mouths.

There are also corresponding inland areas belonging to the cooperation area, as designated by Ramsar and/or EC Bird Directive areas. It is recognized that within the cooperation area, there are areas where human use has priority.

The trilateral conservation area, in short the Conservation Area, is situated within the Wadden Sea area, and consists of:

- in The Netherlands, the areas under Key Planning Decision Wadden Sea;

- in Germany, the Wadden Sea national parks and the protected areas under the Nature Conservation Act seaward of the main dike and the brackish water limit including the Dollard;

- in Denmark, the Wildlife and Nature Reserve Wadden Sea.

The cooperation area consists of a surface area of around 13,500 km2. The Ems-Dollard area is disputed between the Netherlands and Germany, for which bilateral regulations apply. The permanent Dutch-German commission for the border waters (Ems Commission) drew up a joint plan of action, in agreement with the Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan, for management of the waters and nature in this area.

The fundamental principles of the Trilateral Wadden Sea Policy, as worded in the declaration of Esbjerg in 1991, is 'the realization, as far as possible, of a natural and sustainable ecosystem, in which natural processes can take place in an undisrupted manner'. The principle concerns the protection of the tidal region, salt marshes, beaches and dunes.

Seven principles have been accepted, which are essential for decision making in relation to the protection and management of the Cooperation area:

1. principle for careful decision making

Policy must be based on the best available information.

2. principle of avoidance

Activities which are potentially dangerous for the ecosystem must be avoided.

3. precautionary principle

Activities for which it is unknown whether it could have negative effects on the ecosystem must be avoided until it has been proven that there are no negative influences.

4. principle of translocation

Activities which exert negative effects on the ecosystem must be translocated out of the Wadden Sea.

5. principle of compensation

Activities which exert unavoidable harmful effects on the ecosystem must be compensated elsewhere in the wadden region with measures which will have extra positive effects on the ecosystem.

6. principle of restoration

Parts of the system which have been damaged must be restored to their old state where possible.

7. principle of best available technology and the principle of the best environmentally safe procedure

If activities must take place, then they must happen with help of the best available technique and the greatest amount of carefulness.

It must be prevented that inhabitants of the wadden region are unreasonably damaged in their interests or in their traditional use of the Wadden Sea. Interests of users must be considered justly and fairly, with due respect for the general goal as well as the interests of the parties involved.

Weblinks

Reports, news and plans of the Trilateral Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea:
http://www.waddensea-secretariat.org/

News, policy and background information about the Wadden Sea:
http://www.waddenzee.nl/

Source: de Vleet, Ecomare