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Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan Eighth Trilateral Governmental Conference on the Protection of the Wadden Sea Stade, Germany, October 22, 1997 Contents: Preface I. Integrated Management II. The Targets: 1 Landscape and Culture 2 Water and Sediment 3 Salt Marshes 4 Tidal Area 5 Beaches and Dunes   6 Estuaries 7 Offshore Area 8 Rural Area 9 Birds 10 Marine Mammals   Appendix I: Maps Appendix II: Index of Activites Appendix III: Glossary   2 Water and Sediment The Wadden Sea is an open system. With the rising tide, marine water and sediment from the North Sea enter the Wadden Sea. Fresh water and sediments are discharged by a number of large rivers. The quality of water and sediment in the Wadden Sea is mainly determined by these external sources through which polluting substances enter the Wadden Sea. Atmospheric deposition is an additional source of pollution. Pollutants are generally divided into three types, namely 'natural micro-pollutants', 'man-made micro-pollutants' and 'macro-pollutants'. The first class contains substances like heavy metals, which are not only produced by Man, but which also occur naturally in the environment, be it in low concentrations. The second class, the man-made substances, also called xenobiotics, contains substances like PCBs and pesticides. Macro-pollutants are substances which are of natural origin and can be found in relatively high concentrations in the (marine) environment. The most important ones are nutrients, in particular, phosphorus and nitrogen compounds. Micro-pollutants can have toxic effects on biota, for example, through interference with the reproductive system or the immune system. These effects can be aggravated through bio-accumulation and synergism. Nutrients in excess concentrations and quantities may lead to increased primary production which, in turn, can cause negative effects like oxygen depletion as a result of decaying algal material, shifts in species composition and remobilization of micro-pollutants.   Status The relatively high level of pollution of the Wadden Sea is caused by three main factors: A number of rivers, of which the catchment areas are highly industrialized and agronomized, flow into the Wadden Sea. The catchment areas add up to some 231,000 km2 which is about 17 times the Wadden Sea Area. It extends to the southeast as far as the Chechian-Austrian border. Among the rivers are the Elbe, Weser, Ems and the IJssel, a branch of the Rhine. In addition, a substantial part of the Rhine water enters the Wadden Sea via the North Sea through a coastal flow along the Dutch coast. Rivers are by far the largest carrier of polluting substances from the land to the Wadden Sea. The German rivers Elbe, Weser and Ems, together with the Dutch IJsselmeer, each year discharge, on average, 60 km3 of polluted water into the Wadden Sea. The rivers transport heavy metals, PCBs and pesticides like lindane and large amounts of nutrients. Due to the net North Sea current, a substantial part of North Sea water and suspended particles - and consequently polluting substances - enter the Wadden Sea. The Wadden Sea lies at the rim of northwestern Europe. A significant part of its pollution is caused by atmospheric deposition which originates from the highly industrialized northwestern and central European countries.   Targets       Background concentrations of natural micropollutants. Concentrations of man-made substances as resulting from zero discharges. A Wadden Sea which can be regarded as a eutrophication non-problem area.   Assessment Over the last two decades, the loads of toxic compounds discharged by rivers have decreased substantially. In the Wadden Sea itself, a general reduction in the concentration of regularly monitored pollutants, such as heavy metals and PCBs, can be observed. The two most important nutrients are nitrogen compounds and phosphate. Of these, the concentrations of phosphate and, to a lesser extent, nitrogen compounds in the water of the Wadden Sea have started to decrease in the second half of the 1980s, mainly as a result of the use of phosphate free detergent and water purification. The fact that nitrogen inputs have not been reduced as much as phosphorus, has caused a shift in the relative concentrations of these nutrients. This may cause an increase in occurrence of toxic algae. It is not clear whether there are other biological consequences. Many toxic compounds, such as heavy metals and PCBs, entering the Wadden Sea finally end up in the sediment, especially in fine-grained sediments. During dredging, special attention has to be paid to the pollution level of the dredged spoil. Moreover, dredging and dumping of dredged material may affect the visibility of the water column. Shipping activities are a potential source of contamination with oil, garbage and hazardous substances. In the past years, several incidents have occurred of washed ashore chemicals and oil which originated from ships. The number of oiled birds washed ashore along the Wadden Sea coast remains high. In most cases, the oil originates from shipping. Atmospheric deposition is another major source of pollutant inputs of certain substances. Recently, it was decided, within the IMO, that certain classes of ships carrying dangerous cargos should follow the mandatory route off the Wadden Sea coast of The Netherlands and Germany. It is the route from North Hinder to the German Bight and vice versa (Deepwater route) and it is mandatory for oil tankers larger than 10,000 gross tons (GT) and ships carrying noxious liquid substances or gases in bulk (? 5,000 or ? 10,000 tons GT). According to an EC Directive, vessels carrying hazardous goods entering European harbors are obligated to report to the competent authorities.   How to proceed The trilateral policy and management, regarding pollution issues, is closely related to developments within the framework of the North Sea Conferences, the Oslo and Paris Conventions, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the European Union. It is within these frameworks that international agreements on pollution issues, relevant for the whole catchment area of the Wadden Sea Area, are made. The most relevant agreements are those of the North Sea Conferences and of the Paris Commission regarding a 50% reduction of nutrient inputs and a 50 to 70% reduction of inputs of hazardous substances between 1985 - 1995. In 1992, the Paris Commission decided to reduce, by the year 2000, pollution from discharges of compounds which are toxic, persistent and liable to bioaccumulate, to levels that are not harmful to man or nature, with the aim of their elimination. In 1995, the North Sea states agreed to prevent pollution by continuously reducing discharges, emissions and losses of hazardous substances, thereby, moving towards the target of their cessation within one generation (25 years); with the ultimate aim of concentrations in the environment near background values for naturally occurring substances, and close to zero for man-made synthetic substances (NSC Esbjerg, §17). Also, the MARPOL Convention is very important for the Wadden Sea because it regulates operational discharges of oil, garbage and hazardous substances from ships. In the IMO framework, furthermore, extensive regulations for the enhancement of safe ship traffic have been developed. At the 7th Trilateral Wadden Sea Conference, it was agreed that regarding the Targets on the quality of water and sediment, it is the trilateral policy to strengthen the cooperation in relevant international frameworks to realize the Targets to reduce environmental pollution (LD §6.3). Where appropriate, such cooperation will be strengthened with the aim of further reducing, in particular, inputs of organic micro-pollutants and nitrogen. Common Trilateral Statements were submitted to the North Sea Conferences in which the special interests and problems of the Wadden Sea have been elaborated in relation to the issues dealt with at the subsequent conferences. The coordination with the ongoing preparation of the North Sea Conferences and, regarding monitoring and assessment in OSPAR, is achieved by means of a permanent observership in the relevant working groups. It is unclear to what extent the handling of dredging and the dumping of dredged material is comparable in the three Wadden Sea countries. In 1993, Guidelines on dredged material were published by the Oslo Commission. At the Esbjerg Wadden Sea Conference, it was agreed to cooperate in developing national criteria for dredging and disposal of dredged material in accordance with the Oslo Guidelines and to consider the need for harmonization (ED §9). In light of the importance of dredging and dumping activities for the Wadden Sea ecosystem, it seems appropriate to evaluate this decision with the aim of continuing the process of trilateral harmonization. With regard to illegal discharges from ships, relevant developments in the North Sea Conference and IMO frameworks must be supported. At the Leeuwarden Conference, it was decided to invite competent authorities to take appropriate steps to minimize discharges into the sea, especially from recreational shipping, including systems for the operations of shore reception facilities as soon as possible, at the latest by 1996 (LD §64.4). In order to be able to evaluate this decision, it is necessary to have an overview of the availability and accessibility of shore reception facilities in Wadden Sea ports.   2.1 Trilateral policy and management 2.1.1 Trilateral policies for the reduction of inputs of nutrients and hazardous substances from all sources are congruent with those within the OSPAR and North Sea Conference frameworks. 2.1.2 In order to reduce nutrient inputs to the Wadden Sea, the measures for sensitive areas under the Urban Waste Water Directive and the measures for vulnerable zones under the conditions of the Nitrate Directive will be applied to the catchment area of the Wadden Sea in line with the Esbjerg North Sea Conference decision. Pollution from ships 2.1.3 With the aim of eliminating operational pollution and minimizing accidental pollution, an information and guiding system for ships carrying hazardous substances will be established. 2.1.4 Harbors bordering the Wadden Sea will have adequate facilities to handle all types of residues and wastes generated by ships to meet the requirements of the MARPOL Convention. 2.1.5 To prevent spills of oil and hazardous substances to the aquatic environment and wildlife, activities aiming at improving enforcement (surveillance and prosecution) of agreed regulations and policies to combat illegal discharges will be continued. Dredging and dumping of dredged material 2.1.6 The three countries will develop and apply national criteria with regard to dredging operations and disposal of dredged material. They will cooperate within the framework of existing international agreements and organizations by exchanging information about the main experiences with the implementation of these criteria. 2.1.7 Dredged material from the Wadden Sea Area and Wadden Sea harbors will, in principle, be dumped back into the system unless the contamination exceeds national criteria levels. Discharges from oil and gas exploration and exploitation activities 2.1.8 The exploration and exploitation of the energy resources in the North Sea, as well as in the Wadden Sea Area, has to comply, at least, with the international agreements in the appropriate fora. This results i.a. in a prohibition to discharge oil-based muds and cuttings. Dumping or discharge of water based muds and/or cuttings is only allowed in line with relevant PARCOM agreements. 2.1.9 The leaching of toxic substances from protective coatings of pipelines and other installations will be avoided by the use of appropriate materials. 2.1.10 In the Conservation Area, offshore activities that have an adverse impact on the Wadden Sea environment will be limited and zero-discharges will be applied. In the Wadden Sea Area outside the Conservation Area, discharges of water-based muds and cuttings will be reduced as far as possible, by applying Best Available Techniques and by prohibiting the discharge of production water from production platforms.   2.2 Trilateral projects and actions 2.2.1 The development of common Wadden Sea specific criteria for the differentiation between eutrophication problem- and non-problem areas necessary for assessing progress in the implementation of the Targets for the reduction of nutrients and, consequently, the reduction of eutrophication. The project will be carried out in close cooperation with the work going on in OSPAR regarding the development of a strategy to combat eutrophication. 2.2.2 An inventory and evaluation on information and guiding systems for ships carrying hazardous substances. 2.2.3 An inventory and evaluation of national practices regarding dredging and the dumping of dredge spoils with the aim of investigating whether harmonization is necessary and feasible. 2.2.4 An inventory and assessment of the availability and accessibility of shore reception facilities.   Top of Page / Next Chapter: II. The Targets: 3 Salt Marshes