How to move forward towards large-scale nature restoration at sea?
Growing attention for nature restoration
On Tuesday 6 May, the Marine Environment Department of the FPS Public Health and Blue Cluster welcomed around a hundred stakeholders and interested parties from various sectors active in and around the North Sea to the Staf Versluys Centre in Bredene. The European nature restoration regulation provides additional urgency.
“By 2030, we want to restore twenty percent of our North Sea, in line with the nature restoration law,” said Minister of Justice and the North Sea Annelies Verlinden during an introductory video message. “In addition, we are committed to better protection of the most ecologically valuable parts of our sea, including through new marine reserves and fishing-restrictive measures.”
Practical implementation, financing and communication
The first plenary session addressed, among other things, the impact of the European Nature Restoration Regulation on the Belgian part of the North Sea. Belgium must submit a concrete nature restoration plan to the European Commission by September 2026.
Blue Cluster then focused on the question of how the blue economy can ensure accelerated nature restoration at sea, and delved deeper into recent projects that deal with this. Subsequently, there was room for debate and interaction during three parallel breakout sessions on practical implementation and innovation, communication and financing.
The discussions that took place in these sessions will serve as a basis for outlining the nature restoration files of the Marine Environment Department, including the development of a communication and financing strategy, the preparation of the marine nature restoration plan, and the design of the concrete restoration projects.
During a closing plenary session, the most important conclusions of the three sessions were presented to the entire audience.
Follow-up trajectory
The event in Bredene was the third meeting in a process that started in 2022. During the kick-off in May 2022, the three most important habitats in the Belgian North Sea and the policy vision on nature restoration were presented. A second meeting followed in December 2023 with a focus on the current state of affairs and the further implementation of protection measures.
The Marine Environment Service and Blue Cluster are determined to continue this constructive consultation with stakeholders. Only through cooperation between government, science, industry and civil society can we successfully and sustainably realise nature restoration at sea.
Industry
Blue Cluster is convinced that a sustainable blue economy can play an important role in nature restoration. It is crucial that companies in the blue economy are aware of and actively involved in such initiatives.
As co-organiser of this event, we have succeeded in bringing the industry closer to the theme of nature restoration. By involving companies in knowledge sharing and co-creation, we not only strengthen the support base, but also the innovative power for nature restoration.
