The national park Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer

Abstract

The Wadden Sea fronting the North Sea coast of Germany is a unique, virtually untouched, natural landscape. It is a very important dynamic site for special plants and animals dependent on this habitat. Therefore the Lower Saxony Wadden Sea and the islands have the status of a wetland of international importance, agreed by the Ramsar-Convention, in 1976. It has also been declared as an area of the European Bird Directive and a region with priority for nature. As a consequence, the total Wadden Sea (without the Dollart) of 240 000 ha was constituted as the national park ‘Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer’ on 1 January 1986. It is sectioned into three zones with different states of preservation and human use. The national park administration in Wilhelmshaven protects and tries to develop the park. Therefore it is necessary to stop or reduce all kinds of human activities, for instance farming, hunting, fishing, coast protection and tourism.