Already at the beginning
of the century smaller uninhabited islands were protected as
nature reserves for birds. Later, this was followed by protection
of salt marshes and, to a limited extent, also tidal areas. But
in the 70s it became evident that the whole ecosystem would have
to be protected including the tidal flats and subtidal areas.
This resulted in the establishment of protected areas, national
parks and nature and wildlife reserves. The major part of the
area between Den Helder in the Netherlands and Blåvandshuk
in Denmark is now under legal protection. The areas under conservation
are indicated on the map as Trilateral Conservation
Area.
A more detailed description of the
protection scheme and recent developments can be found in the Quality Status Reports
2004 and
2009.
