Home
The Trilateral
Cooperation
News / Service

Management
Monitoring
Interregional
Cooperation
The information on this site is subject to a disclaimer.

WSNL 1997-1

J. Bunje

Salt Marshes in the National Park "Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer" - Status, Management Aims and Results

Jörn Bunje, National Park Administration Lower Saxon Wadden Sea, Wilhelmshaven, FRG

PROTECTION STATUS

With the establishment of the National Park in 1986, and the inclusion of the complete foreland of the mainland coast up to the dikes and the East Frisian Islands, the whole area of the salt marshes in Niedersachsen is under nature protection.

Because of the high protection value, the main part of the salt marshes has been included in Zone I, the most protected zone of the National Park (58 % of the salt marsh area). Here land use is restricted to coastal protection measures and the traditional uses grazing and mowing. In addition to these regulations, entering the salt marshes is forbidden in Zone II (41 %) in the period from 1 April to 31 July (breeding period of birds). Only the salt marshes in Zone III (1 %) are reserved for recreational use.

 

CURRENT STATUS

Today the whole area of the salt marshes in the National Park is about 10,000 ha. Of this area, 2,000 ha are protected by a summer dike. Additionally, about 1,000 ha of grassland on the islands are sheltered by dunes and sea dikes (Tab. 1). The majority of the salt marsh area is state owned only 1,900 ha is private land. On the islands, some salt marshes are owned by the local communities.

 

The island salt marshes are mostly of natural origin, especially at the eastern parts of the islands where there are large areas with natural salt marshes, most of them unused only some near the villages - mainly the community owned and a few of the state owned ones- are grazed by horses. These grazing paddocks are needed for feeding the carriage-horses on the islands, where no cars are allowed, and for riding horses.

Most of the present salt marshes along the coast are artificial ones resulting from land reclamation and coastal protection at the expense of mudflats. Caused by the reduction of the dike length by embankment of the bays, a lot of the natural coastal salt marshes have been lost so that the original salt marsh areas along the mainland coast of Niedersachsen have been reduced to a small belt.

Nowadays, natural conditions for sedimentation and development of salt marshes can only be found at the Leybucht and the west ern part of the Jadebusen as well as at the Elisabeth-Außengroden. The traditional use of the coastal marshes is grazing by cattle at different intensity. Between the rivers of Weser and Elbe, a bigger part is grazed by sheep. In general, the salt marshes in this area are not used for other agricultural purposes.

Tab. 1. Ownership and using-intensity in salt marshes, summerpolders and polders in the National Park Lower Saxony, 1996. (Domänenämter, Staatliches Amt für Insel und Küstenschutz, 1994).

area

owner

agriculture using (grazing, mowing)

other use
(e.g. recreation)

total

state.

private/commune

no use

light use

heavy use

in ha

in %

in %

in %

in %

in %

in %

East Frisian Islands

salt marsh

2.635

86

14

86

9

5

-

summer polder

300

100

-

33

66

-

-

polder

900

52

48

7

29

64

-

East Frisian. coast Wangerland

salt marsh

2.305

97

3

51

37

5

7

summer polder

574

57

43

-

10

86

3

Jadebusen

salt marsh

1.708

100

-

64

35

-

1

summer polder

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Butjadingen

salt marsh

542

100

-

59

40

-

1

summer polder

164

100

-

-

100

-

-

Wurster Küste

salt marsh

922

45

55

2

5

91

2

summer polder

874

11

89

-

16

84

-

sum according to area

salt marsh

8.112

89

11

60

24

13

2

summer polder

1.912

46

54

5

29

64

1

polder

900

52

48

7

29

64

-

total sum

10.924

78%

22%

46%

25%

26%

2%

WSNL 1997-1

J. Bunje

MANAGEMENT AIMS

Main aim: To reduce the pressure or to abandon the use altogether

  • Reduction of the agricultural use in the salt marsh area
    This can be realized best on the state owned land. In contracts between the state of Niedersachsen and private farmers, the strips near the dike are used less intensively (e.g. cattle density: 1 cattle /ha, first mowing date 1 July, the use of fertilizers and biocides is forbidden). 1,900 ha of the land outside the dike is private property. There is a possibility to pay compensation for the disadvantages caused by a more natural farming method combined with a reduction of the land use intensity.
  • The amount of coastal protection measures should be reduced to a minimum. Especially the artificial drainage and sedimentation should be stopped. This nature conservation objective includes toleration of partial erosion of marshes as a natural process. But the necessary work to prevent the total loss of salt marshes is supported. Because of a general loss of coastal salt marshes, coastal protection measurements, such as bush groynes, to protect the salt marsh edges in order to keep the salt marsh area in its present scale can be accepted.
  • The human disturbances of wildlife should be reduced.

 

The 2nd Aim: Protection of endangered biotopes and species

  • The former and continuous artificial changes of the abiotic factors in the salt marshes prevent the development of all types of a really natural ecosystem (e.g.: loss of wet basins by drainage). So, it can be necessary to complete the natural diversity of ecosystem types by special management measures till these missing parts have developed by natural evolution.
  • With regard to national and international aspects of species protection, the conservation or development of special artificial habitats can be necessary.

Coastal protection measures will continue in parts of the salt marshes. If possible, management measures for the protection of species or research programs should be combined with these coastal protection measures. In a few cases, grazing can be an instrument of biotope management for the protection of endangered species. For this purpose, a part of the state owned summer polders without regular salt marsh influences are still in use.

 

WSNL 1997-1

J. Bunje

RESULTS

Since the founding of the national park, salt marshes along the coast and the main part of the salt marshes on the East Frisian Islands have been taken off of agricultural use. Therefore, currently more than 60 % of the total salt marsh area is without agricultural use. 24% is extensively used (no more than one cow or three sheep per ha). Only on 13% of the salt marshes - mostly privately owned - intensive use takes place. Most of these areas are located at the eastern part of the mainland coast between Weser and Elbe (s. Tab. 1).

 

 

The regulation to reduce the agricultural use on privately owned land by compensation payments was accepted in 1994 for more than 50 % of the land in question. To gain more influence on the agricultural use, the national park administration bought 324 ha of salt marshes and polder since founding the park. To reduce the human disturbances of wildlife, the national park administration carries out different concepts, for example, the zoning of the national park with different regulations for recreation, such as the concept of ãvisitor information and guiding" and the concept of signed footpaths through the salt marshes.

REFERENCES

Zander, R. 1989. Management of Salt Marshes in the National Park ãNiedersächsisches Wattenmeer", in: Proceedings of the Second Trilateral Working Conference on Salt Marsh Management in the Wadden Sea Region, Rømø 1989, p. 183 - 189; Ministry of the Environment, The National Forest and Nature Agency, 1990.

Potel, P., Südbeck, P. 1994. Outline of the current problems in Niedersachsen, in: Brent Geese in the Wadden Sea, Proceedings of the International Workshop, Leeuwarden 1994, p. 147 - 149, Publication: Dutch Society for the Preservation of the Wadden Sea.

 

Authors address:
Nationalparkverwaltung
Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer
Virchowstr. 1
D - 26382 Wilhelmshaven

Back to Contents