Information & Meetings
	Conferences & Events
	Vacancy

Organisations
	New hyperlinks
	Coastal erosion trends: call for local examples

Environment
	Large dams and reservoirs emit climate gases
	Climate change effects marine plankton composition in Atlantic

Development & Trends
	EUCC assessed sustainability of whale watching tour operators
	Off-shore wind energy development: some like it slow
	Amsterdam port reception facility to close due to low demand
	Lukoil plans oil exploitation project near Curonian Spit

Policy
	ICZM Recommendations signed by European Council and Parliament
	European Council proposes sustainable future for tourism

Events recently announded

Please note:
The overview of the Coastal Guide conference and event  meeting list can be found at http://www.coastalguide.org/meetings/

Vacancy

CoastNet Network Coordinator

CoastNet, a coastal networking organisation and registered charity require the services of a network coordinator and project manager. CoastNET's core activities are its national conferences, website (http://www.coastnet.org.uk), Bulletin and Directory of coastal contacts. The initial appointment is for 2.5 days per week, salary up to £18,000 p.a. pro rata, plus an allowance for home working. Some basic knowledge of the coastal sector and CoastNet would be desirable, but a well organised administrator and project manager, able to develop areas of work under their own initiative is more important. The deadline for applications is 30 June 2002.
For further information contact Alex Midlen (Chairman) on 01206 282480, or alex.midlen@colchester.gov.uk

New hyperlinks

Climate Change and Preventive Risk and Coastal Protection Management on the German North Sea Coast (KRIM)
http://www.krim.uni-bremen.de/englisch/indexenglisch.html
The interdisciplinary cooperative research project KRIM aims at providing orientation and action-taking know-how for risk management in coastal protection under climate change conditions

United Nations Atlas of the Oceans
http://www.oceansatlas.org
The Atlas is an information system designed for use by policy makers who need to become familiar with ocean issues and by scientists, students and resource managers who need access to underlying data bases and approaches to sustainability

Coastal erosion trends: call for local examples

In the framework of the EUROSION project (coastal erosion in Europe, see Coastal Guide News 2002-2) the EUCC is presently preparing a report about current and future trends with regard to coastal erosion. It is envisaged to provide an overview of local examples from throughout Europe, with reference to all littoral countries involved (EU Member States as well as accession countries). Therefore, papers, references and information will be highly appreciated (and acknowledged) on the following aspects: - physical trends re: the coastline - analysis or indication of causes - impacts (economic, environmental) - costs of measures (defence costs, budgets) and trends thereof. Those contributing with information will receive the report after completion.
For more information and contributions, contact Maria Ferreira at the EUCC, e-mail: maria@coastalguide.org

Large dams and reservoirs emit climate gases

Large dams might not only change coastal sediment balance and lead to erosion, they might also contribute to climate change, as a new report by the International Rivers Network (IRN) suggests. The report "Flooding the Land, Warming the Earth: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Dams" was released at a UN climate meeting in Bonn on 11 June. Although IRN acknowledges that more research is needed to define the exact contribution of dams and reservoirs to climate change, the study quotes preliminary estimates that the amount of methane - a potent greenhouse gas - released from reservoirs world-wide is equal to 20 percent of total emissions due to human activities. The report concludes that large hydropower projects should not receive carbon credits under climate trading schemes.
The study can be downloaded from http://www.irn.org/wcd/IRNGHGsfromDams.pdf

Climate change effects marine plankton composition in Atlantic

The Science Magazine of 31 May published fresh evidence of how climate change effects marine life. On the basis of marine plankton data gathered since 1946 in the Continuous Plankton Recorder survey, researchers describe changes in the species composition of plankton species (copepods) in the North Atlantic during the past four decades. They found that southern species have migrated northwards in the eastern Atlantic along the coast of Europe, whereas northern or Arctic species have moved southwards in the western Atlantic off the coast of North America. These data are consistent with recent changes in climate, reflected by Northern hemisphere temperature anomalies and the North Atlantic Oscillation and could explain changes in fish stock distribution.

EUCC assessed sustainability of whale watching tour operators

Only a minority of whale watching operators is willing to report on their environmental performance and many of them do not adopt guidelines to limit impacts on the animals and the marine environment. This is the result of a study by EUCC - The Coastal Union, based on a set of minimum environmental standards for whale and dolphin trips. This year, in Europe alone, more than 2 million people are expected to participate in a trip to see whales and dolphins, spending almost 200 million EUR. Visitors who want to avoid finding themselves in doubtful manoeuvres can now check the performance of operators on the internet before booking. The Whale Watching Guide is part of the "Coastal Guide to Europe", a website that provides information on eco-tourism in coastal and marine areas, a joint initiative of the EUCC and the Cousteau Society.
For more information, visit http://www.coastalguide.to or e-mail Mr. Albert Salman, e-mail: salman@eucc.nl.

Off-shore wind energy development: some like it slow

Ten Dutch environmental and nature organisations (including the Dutch Dune Foundation and the North Sea Foundation, that are in the partnership Kust en Zee together with the EUCC) released a vision on offshore wind farms called 'Frisse Zeewind' (Fresh Sea Breeze). It contains an appeal to the Dutch government to support the development of wind farms outside the territorial waters in a cautious manner. The vision suggests starting with pilot projects, assessing the effects on nature and safety comprehensively, defining preferred areas and developing the wind parks in phases. The newsletter "IKZM Aktuell", just launched by the German branch of EUCC, also reports on recent off-shore wind energy trends in Germany and Denmark. While WWF Germany is calling for a slow start with off-shore wind energy - the approval of only three out of 30 applications, the German Ministry for Environment has published an up-beat study on the potential contribution of off-shore wind parks to Germany's electricity supply. Denmark, on the other hand, just cut public subsidies for renewable energy technology. The Danish wind energy sector is badly hit by this new development.
For more information: North See Foundation, Michel Langendijk en Sytske van den Akker, +31-30-2340016, http://www.noordzee.nl.
The German study on offshore wind parks can be downloaded from: http://www.bmu.de/english/fset800.php.
IKZM Aktuell can be read under http://www.coastalguide.org/news/ikzm_aktuell.html

Amsterdam port reception facility to close due to low demand

The Port Reception Facility AVR Amsterdam has announced the closure of its Amsterdam facility this month. The reasoning behind its decision is that too few ships (only 7% of all visiting ships) deliver their garbage to Dutch ports because it is still easier and cheaper to dump it straight into the sea. The EU Directive on Port Reception Facilities should help to put an end to this unsustainable practice, but it is highly unlikely that the Netherlands will now be ready by 28 December 2002 - the implementation date agreed by EU countries. According to a civil servant from the Dutch Ministry of Transport, September 2003 will be a more likely date. This means at least a further 12 months of garbage floating in the North Sea and washing up along its coastline. More information from Eelco Leemans at e.leemans@noordzee.nl

Lukoil plans oil exploitation project near Curonian Spit

About 20 organisations from all over the world, including Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Sweden, have expressed their concerns about the environmental and socio-economic impacts of off-shore oil extraction only 22 km away from Russia's Curonian Spit National Park in the Baltic, included in UNESCO's World Heritage list. On 3 June, Lukoil-Kaliningradmorneft, the oil company that is planning this project called "D6", organised a public hearing on the issue.
For more information, visit http://www.ecodefense.ru/index.php4?lang=eng&div=1

ICZM Recommendations signed by European Council and Parliament

The European Commission's Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) Strategy for Europe (COM/00/547 of 17 Sept. 2000) is now being complemented by the "Recommendations of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2002 concerning the implementation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Europe". The Recommendations towards the EU Member States propose the formulation of national strategies and measures based on the principles of integrated coastal zone management, which includes "working with natural processes and respecting the carrying capacity of ecosystems". Member States are requested to conduct or update an overall stocktaking to analyse which major actors, laws, and institutions influence the management of their coastal zone and consequently to develop a national strategy to implement the principles for integrated management of the coastal zone. They should also promote public participation, identify sources of durable financing for ICZM initiatives, and install adequate systems for monitoring and disseminating information to the public about their coastal zone. These systems should collect and provide information in appropriate and compatible formats to decision makers at national, regional, and local levels. National training and educational programmes as well as co-operation with neigbouring (including accession) countries are also recommended. Member States have to report to the Commission on the experience in implementing the Recommendations after a period of 45 months. The Commission should review the Recommendations within 55 months following the date of adoption. The complete text can be downloaded from
http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/dat/2002/l_148/l_14820020606en00240027.pdf

European Council proposes sustainable future for tourism

In its resolution of 21 May 2002 "on the future of European tourism", the European Council proposes that "tourism should take into consideration the interests of economic, social and environmental sustainability and the need to preserve natural, cultural and ecological resources". It invites the European Commission to a) promote a stakeholder dialogue, b) to follow the development of sustainability indicators and the preparation of an Agenda 21 for European tourism, and c) to promote actively the use of quality indicators of tourist destinations, in particular with the help of information technology systems to permit the exchange of information. The EU Member States are being invited to favour the voluntary application of sustainability indicators for enterprises and destinations and to facilitate the dissemination of good practice. The Resolution is published on http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/dat/2002/c_135/c_13520020606en00010003.pdf

Deadline for submitting contributions to Coastal Guide News No 13: 26 June, 2002

COASTAL GUIDE NEWS is a biweekly newsletter published by the EUCC - The Coastal Union with financial support of Stichting DOEN, the foundation of the Dutch lottery "Postcode Loterij" and the Department of International Nature Affairs of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries. For free subscriptions, comments or contributions to this newsletter, please contact news@coastalguide.org. 

Members of the Coastal Guide News editorial team: Erik Devilee, Marijke Kooijman, Irene Lucius, Piet Lansbergen, Hanneke Mesters, Albert Salman.
 

Established in 1989, the EUCC - The Coastal Union is an association involving the largest coastal network in Europe with 750 members and member organisations in 40 countries. For more information please contact EUCC International Secretariat, POBox 11232, NL-2301 EE Leiden, the Netherlands, tel.: +31-71-5122900, internet: http://www.eucc.nl
 

© EUCC