Integrated Environmental Monitoring Informs Adaptive Management of Coastal Wetlands
2025/2027
EUCC is proud to be coordinating an EU-funded initiative aimed at strengthening coastal wetland monitoring and conservation of migratory birds. The project aims at improving the protection and adaptive management of coastal wetlands along the East Atlantic Flyway (EAF). These vital ecosystems support migratory bird populations and provide essential services such as flood protection, carbon storage, and biodiversity conservation—yet they are increasingly threatened by climate change, urbanisation, and unsustainable land use.
Funded by the EU Technical Support Instrument (TSI) under the European Commission’s SG REFORM, FLYWAY2 directly contributes to the implementation of key EU environmental frameworks, including the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, the Nature Restoration Law, and the Marine Spatial Planning Directive.
EUCC Network & Expert Partners
As project coordinator, EUCC has assembled a technical team of leading experts from across Europe to develop an integrated environmental monitoring framework that supports adaptive wetland management and policy alignment across EU Member States. The expert consortium includes:
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BioConsult SH (Germany)
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Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University (Denmark)
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IHCantabria (Spain)
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Research Institute for Nature and Forest (Belgium)
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Wageningen University & Research (Netherlands)
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EUCC – The Coastal Union Germany
Together, this team will develop harmonised monitoring tools, pilot innovative technologies, and support the integration of Flyway conservation priorities into EU Nature Restoration Plans and Marine Spatial Plans.
Strategic Impact
FLYWAY2 builds on the success of the 2023 FLYWAY TSI project and responds to a formal request for support from public authorities in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain (Cantabria and Asturias). Additional Member States—Finland, Sweden, France, and Portugal—also support the project’s broader goals.
By aligning technical, policy, and governance elements, FLYWAY2 aims to:
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Improve the quality and coherence of environmental monitoring across coastal wetlands
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Strengthen cross-border collaboration and data comparability
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Inform evidence-based conservation and spatial planning decisions
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Reinforce the long-term resilience of wetland ecosystems and migratory bird populations
EUCC’s coordination of FLYWAY2 reflects its long-standing commitment to sustainable coastal and marine management. Through this initiative, EUCC and its network are helping to build a more resilient, biodiverse Europe—where nature-based solutions and collaborative governance drive lasting change.
Funding: SG REFORM TSI-2025-EAFLYWAY2-IBA
CLIMATE – MATCH
Mainstreaming of Climate Adaptation for Horizontal
Coordination | 2024-2026
In this project, EUCC is responsible for the coordination of the project implementation. Within this project EUCC works closely with a team of experts from the Environmental Hydraulics Institute of the University of Cantabria (IHCantabria), AKTIS Hydraulics (The Netherlands) and the University of Malta.
Climate-Match aims to develop a holistic Strategic Framework covering governance, operations, and coordination across different sectors for collaborative management and monitoring of climate change risks to the Maltese Islands. This initiative is funded by the European Commission's Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) upon request of the Maltese Public Works Department, the Ministry for Transport Infrastructure and Public Works (MTIP) and the Ministry for Environment, Energy and Regeneration of the Grand Harbour (MEER).
Specifically, this initiative aims to:
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develop a national integrative instrument that will bridge multi-level and multi-sectoral planning instruments for climate governance (vertically and horizontally),
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establish a platform for a collaborative approach to building preparedness for the impacts of climate change and land-sea interactions, selecting the coast as the frontline of climate impact for small island states, and
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develop tools for understanding the structural vulnerability of different coastal heritage assets to climate risks, also used as case studies.
Funding: DG REFORM TSI-2023-COMMONCOAST-IBA - A common coast to cherish - capping climate impact (COMMONCOAST) (project number 101145916)
FLYWAY
Innovations for migratory bird monitoring along the Easts Atlantic
Flyway | 2022-2024
The EUCC is project coordinator of this initiative which it is carrying out together with its partners SOVON (Dutch Center for Field Bird Science / Wadden Sea Flyway initiative) and EUCC Germany.
FLYWAY is an initiative funded by the European Commission's (EC) Technical Support Instrument (TSI) upon the request of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality submitted on behalf of its counterparts in Germany and Denmark.
The main goal is to provide a Roadmap for the introduction of innovative and integrative techniques for bird and habitat monitoring along the East Atlantic Flyway, as is important for Wadden Sea management
Specifically, the project aims to:
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Provide an insight into how flyway monitoring can be improved by applying modern techniques;
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Compile a comparative analysis of different technologies that can be realistically implemented;
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Provide a Roadmap, Implementation Plan to guide change management while promoting trilateral harmonisation among the three Member States responsible for Wadden Sea Management (The Netherlands, Germany and Denmark).
Funding: DG REFORM TSI-2022-NLFLYWAY-IBA (project number 101102252
Developing a Coastal Protection & Adaptation Strategy for the Maltese Islands | 2021-2023
EUCC coordinated the project implementation and worked closely with a technical team from the Environmental Hydraulics Institute of the University of Cantabria (IHCantabria), AKTIS Hydraulics and international experts from Italy, Ireland and France and the University of Malta, national partner. The development of the Coastal Protection Strategy for the Maltese Islands is an initiative funded by the European Commission's (EC) Technical Support Instrument upon request of the Maltese Public Works Department (PWD), Ministry for Transport Infrastructure & Capital Projects (MTIP), and the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA). It aims to secure economically and environmentally sustainable coastal protection management taking climate change into account. Working in close cooperation with the Maltese Authorities PWD and MTA, the team focused on the engagement of stakeholders and communication activities that facilitate the need for a holistic and integrative process. It is expected that this action will allow the Maltese Authorities to take up the necessary measures to ensure the sustainability of coastal functions and activities in the entire Maltese Islands coastline.
TSI-2021-MTCOASTAL Coastal Protection Strategy for the Maltese Islands (nr.101049757). More information at the DG REFORM website
Supporting the development of a National Strategic Plan for Coastal Protection in Spain | 2020-2022
Since early October 2020, the EUCC team is leading this project initiative, in cooperation with the Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria (IHCantabria), the University Institute ECOAQUA (IU-ECOAQUA) of the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) and a group of international experts,in response to a request from the Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) and the Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO). The main goal is to develop the development of a National Strategic Plan for Coastal Protection in Spain, considering the effects of climate change. The overall objectives and expected impact are as follows:
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reduction of coastal pressures, while protecting and preserving the shoreline mostly exposed to coastal dynamics.
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identification of sustainable, suitable, and effective protective solutions, that take into account the impacts of climate change, the integrated management of water resources, the contribution of sediments from rivers to the coastline and other land-sea interactions.
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regional harmonisation and implementation of coastal protection solutions for the entire Spanish coastal territory, by establishing a consistent strategic framework at national level.
Financing Agency: European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service (SRSS) – DG REFORM
Strategies for Coastal Protection for the provinces of Cádiz, Málaga and Almería considering the effects of climate change | 2019-2021
The EUCC team leads the development of this project, which started in February 2019, in cooperation the Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria (IHCantabria), the University of Cadiz and MedCities.
This project responds to a request from the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service and the Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) concerning the development of Strategies for Coastal Protection considering the climate change effects for the provinces of Cadiz, Malaga and Almeria.
Working in close cooperation with MITECO, over 24 months the team carries out a diagnosis for better understanding of the coastal erosion problems, an analysis of possible scenarios and risk reduction options, and design the Coastal Protection Strategies along the coasts of Cádiz, Málaga and Almería. The Strategies will be developed considering other relevant key stakeholders in the provinces.
Financing Agency: European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service (SRSS) – DG REFORM
Strategies for Coastal Protection of the Balearic Islands considering the effects of climate change | 2019-2022
The EUCC team, in cooperation with the Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria (IHCantabria), MedCities and Sistema de Observación y Predicción Costero de las Islas Baleares “ICTS SOCIB”, leads this project which started in December 2019.
This project responds to a request from the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service and Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITERD) and its objective is the development of Strategy for the Coastal Protection of the Balearic Islands, considering the effects of climate change.
The overall objectives and expected impact are as follows:
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the reduction of risks derived from coastal erosion and flooding aiming for the protection and
conservation of coastal assets (physical, natural and cultural) in the Balearic Islands -
the preservation of the physical equilibrium of the shore and the reduction of anthropogenic
coastal erosion, maintaining unique coastal geomorphological features and the peculiar littoral
landscape (particularly in natural areas), and -
availability of the coastal area for recreational and other uses.
Financing Agency: European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service (SRSS) – DG REFORM
Administrative, organizational and technical support for the MSFD Common Implementation Strategy Technical Groups on Marine Litter and Underwater Noise | 2013-ongoing
EUCC lead the execution of this service, concerning the support to TG Noise, as part of consecutive Framework contracts since 2013 for services related to “Emerging pressures, human activities and measures in the marine environment (including marine litter)“. The objective of the current service contract is to provide administrative, organizational and logistic support to the Technical Groups on Marine Litter and Underwater Noise, which include:
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organizing and providing secretarial services for the periodic meetings of the technical groups on Marine Litter and Underwater Noise;
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supporting the technical groups in their reporting obligations to the Working Group on GES, including coordinating input from group members and editing of the Guidance Reports for MS and assisting the exchange of information on on-going activities in the TGs;
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organizing workshops for Member States on the monitoring underwater noise and
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maintaining a clear and effective web-based working platform for each of the two TGs, to support communication activities within the groups.
Throughout this support and the compilation of various technical reports, we highlight one recent TG Noise publication that we produced.
This is the 2nd communication report providing key and updated information regarding the main European-funded projects and other relevant initiatives in this field. This report aims to be useful to experts, policy makers, and to those supporting Member States authorities in implementing the MSFD. In particular, for monitoring measures regarding underwater sound.
Download here the report: Management and monitoring of underwater noise in European Seas - Overview of main European-funded projects and other relevant initiatives. 2nd Communication Report. MSFD Common Implementation Strategy Technical Group on Underwater Noise (TG-Noise). December 2019
Financing Agency: European Commission DG ENV
Developing a Long-Term Awareness Raising Framework for Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) and Integrated Coastal Management (ICZM) in Malta | 2018
EUCC lead the work in response to a call from the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service concerning the development of a long-term awareness raising framework for Maritime Spatial Panning (MSP) and Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) in Malta. The main objective was to identify the most suitable awareness raising activities that could be adopted in Malta with a view to instill greater support to the implementation of the MSP Directive, including within the land-sea interface (LSI).
Our role was to deliver a framework which incorporated a toolbox of suitable awareness raising techniques that can be deployed as necessary by the Planning Authority in Malta, as part of its efforts to implement the MSP Directive. Oriented to address the context of the Maltese Islands and the achievement of the Strategic Plan for Environment and Development 2015 as Malta’s Maritime Spatial Plan, the toolbox provided in the final guidance explained how each technique can best be deployed and monitored.
Financing Agency: European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service (SRSS) – DG REFORM
Ocean Wise: Wise reduction of EPS marine litter in the North-East Atlantic Ocean | 2018-2021
OceanWise aims to jointly develop and implement a set of long-term measures to reduce the impact of expanded polystyrene (EPS) products as marine litter in the North-East Atlantic Ocean. Based on resource-efficiency, participatory methods and circular economy principles, the project will generate new and best practice within sectors considering the use, manufacturing, recycling and uptake of EPS.
The project is led by the Portuguese Ministry of Sea (DGRM) and comprises 12 other partners from 5 Atlantic Area countries – Portugal, Ireland, France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
EUCC co-initiated this project and supports the coordination, development and delivery of project contents and project management.
http://www.oceanwise-project.eu/
Financing agency: European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) INTERREG Atlantic Area.
North Sea Fishing Nets Free (Noordzee Netten Vrij) | 2016-2020
The EUCC, as part of the Healthy Seas initiative, cooperates with the Dutch North Sea Foundation and KIMO Netherlands & Belgium in this project to achieve the goal of freeing the North Sea from abandoned fishing nets.
As in other maritime sectors, it used to be the most normal thing that waste (including old fishing nets) were thrown overboard. That habit is changing rapidly in The Netherlands.
The fishing sector is on the move and is committed to improving waste management on board and in ports, for example by participating in Healthy Seas and by participating in KIMO’s Fishing for Litter project.
Financing Agency: Adessium Foundation
