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1. The Belgian Federal Government http://www.fgov.be has issued a series
of strong measures aiming at a better protection of the North Sea fauna
and flora:
A Royal Decree published on February 14, 2002 in the Belgian Official Journal
forbids to capture, disturb, transport, be in possession of or sell wild
animals including all species of seals, cetaceans, turtles or sea birds
frequenting Belgian waters. Numerous fish species are also conserved by
these measures.
Violations will be punished by fines ranging from 495 to 495000. Unvoluntary
catches, e.g.. in fish nets, must be signaled to the authorities.
The majority of these measures are taken in application of international
conventions and European directives on the protection of natural habitats
and birds, but many go considerably further than required by international
law. An important chapter of the 1999 law on the protection of the marine
environment in sea areas under Belgian jurisdiction is thus entering a concrete
execution phase.
http://www.mumm.ac.be/EN/index.php
2. The North Sea in brief
The North Sea may be a small, shallow pool compared with the oceans, but
nevertheless it is teeming with life. The water and sediment are home to
a wide variety of plants and animals. The North Sea is also a sensitive
ecosystem that is under a great deal of pressure from intense human activities
such as fishing, sand and gravel extraction, shipping, oil and gas extraction,
tourism and industry. The entire North Sea is surrounded by densely populated,
highly industrialised countries. The section along the Belgian coast is
no exception to this, on the contrary. The OSPAR Convention is an international
agreement for the protection of the North East Atlantic Ocean, signed in
Paris in 1992 by 15 countries and the European Union. The OSPAR Commission
supervises the implementation of this agreement and produced the Quality
Status Report in the year 2000. This report describes the current state
of health of various areas of the North East Atlantic.
According to the report, the consequences of fishing, the inflow of harmful
substances and the excessive quantities of nutrients in the sea (eutrophication)
cause the main problems in the North Sea. Some of the busiest shipping
routes in the world cross the North Sea. As a result, the ecosystem is
threatened by oil pollution which may range from small, occasional oil
stains to huge oil spills caused, for instance, by shipping accidents. In
addition to the wealth of living organisms found
along the Belgian coast, there are also the minerals. Sand and gravel are
extracted for the construction industry. And the dredging activities should
not be forgotten. Although this simply involves moving material from one
place to another, we should not underestimate the physical effects and
the possible contamination caused by the dumping of dredged material from
the ports. In addition to the industries in the coastal area and the economic
activities carried out at sea, tourism and recreation also form an important
social and economic activity. The Belgian coast is a great tourist attraction
for both Belgian and foreign visitors. About 20 million people visit this
coast every year, of whom about 13 million stay overnight. Of course, this
also affects the dunes, the beaches and the water. Given that it is not
possible to ignore human activities when managing the North Sea ecosystem,
we have to find and maintain the right balance between both aspects.
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