Lower Saxony designates fishery-free zones in Wadden Sea; WWF says plan insufficient

Lower Saxony wants to designate ten percent of the North Sea coast as a fishery-free zone, thus following EU requirements. Not enough, criticizes WWF.

Publication date: 2026-07-21 09:00

Should no longer be allowed to cast its nets everywhere in the future: Shrimp cutter on a fishing trip. Photo: Ingo Wagner/dpa

By Valentin Endraß

No more fishing in the waters off Borkum, in the Wadden Sea around the Blue Jade near Wangerooge, and in parts of the Jade Bight: The state government of Lower Saxony has selected these and other areas in the Wadden Sea National Park as future protected zones. With this, it is following EU requirements that aim to place a total of ten percent of marine areas in the EU under protection.

A fisheries dialogue is scheduled for Tuesday. Representatives of the shrimp and blue mussel fisheries, as well as environmental protection associations, are invited to discuss the design of the protected areas with the state government.

According to the state government, its proposal is a balanced compromise between nature conservation requirements and the goal of securing the existence of fishing businesses and ports in Lower Saxony.

However, according to the environmental protection organization WWF, the planned protected areas are not sufficient. "The seabed of the North Sea is in poor condition, and fish stocks are also declining," says Catherine Zucco, marine conservation expert at WWF. For the Wadden Sea to recover sufficiently, larger protected areas are needed. Especially those areas that are constantly covered with water serve as retreats for fish and marine animals during low tide and are therefore particularly important. Yet, few protection zones are planned in these areas.

WWF Wants Half of the National Park to Be Free of Use

WWF therefore demands that at least 50 percent of the Wadden Sea be excluded from fishing. To this end, it has developed its own proposal for areas where fishing should no longer be allowed. The organization also refers to the Federal Nature Conservation Act, which stipulates that about half of a national park should be free of use.

Criticism also comes from the German Environmental Aid (DUH). "The Wadden Sea National Park exists only on paper," says its Federal Managing Director, Sascha Müller-Kraenner. He criticizes that the national park has so far been used intensively for economic purposes. However, it was established to give nature enough time to recover.

According to environmental associations, fishing with bottom trawls, which is used in shrimp fishing, is particularly harmful to biodiversity in the Wadden Sea. In this method, nets are pulled just above the seabed on a system of runners and rollers.

Trawls Damage Seagrass Meadows

"Bottom trawls disturb sensitive animals and communities," says Zucco. The stirring up of the seabed prevents, for example, sand corals and other marine animals from settling.

Sascha Müller-Kraenner from DUH also criticizes fishing with bottom trawls in the national park. He points to damage to seagrass meadows. "They are one of the most species-rich habitats in the sea. They are simply torn out, and regeneration takes a long time."

"If there are large quiet zones, nature recovers well, and fisheries also benefit from this." — Catherine Zucco, WWF

Gerold Conradi from the Association of Small High Seas and Coastal Fisheries rejects this accusation. "We do not plow the seabed," the professional fisherman told taz, referring to the distance of the nets from the seabed. If 50 percent of the Wadden Sea were to be excluded from fishing, as WWF demands, "coastal fishing could be shelved," Conradi continued.

German Environmental Aid Threatens with Lawsuit

Conradi sees no solution in seabed-friendly fishing methods using traps, as demanded by the Environmental Aid, for example. These are not economical.

In its press release regarding the fisheries dialogue, the Environmental Aid calls on the state government to adequately consider species protection in the national park.