Summary
On 11 July 2019, the municipal council of Noardeast-Fryslân adopted a non-binding motion calling for special rights of the UNESCO World Heritage Wadden Sea.
The resolution urges the cabinet to establish an independent management authority for the nature reserve, intended to better protect nature. This would give the ecosystem “its own legal place and identity in our society, just like a municipality, water board or company.”
The resolution states that “the Wadden Sea is a unique nature reserve in the Netherlands and the world, which deserves and justifies unique protection” and notes that “there are already nature reserves abroad that have a special legal status.”
The resolution calls to bring this motion to the attention of the other Wadden Sea municipalities with the request to join forces with Noardeast-Fryslân and advocate this approach with national authorities.
Background
The resolution was adopted a few months after the container ship MSC Zoe lost 345 containers in the Wadden Sea during a severe storm, which the motion describes as a disaster that clearly demonstrated the vulnerability of the ecosystem with consequences that will be felt for years to come. These containers spilled debris and toxic chemicals across the Wadden Sea, with litter covering the coastline. Cleanup efforts took months, and subsequent ecological surveys by Rijkswaterstaat and Wageningen Marine Research found microplastic contamination in coastal sediments and benthic habitats.
Ecological context
The Wadden Sea is a UNESCO World Heritage Site across the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark. It is the is the world’s largest unbroken system of intertidal flats, and is considered one of the most important areas for migratory birds in the world, with an average of 10-12 million passing through it each year and up to 6.1 million birds present at the same time. Despite its protected status, the Wadden Sea faces various threats such as rising sea levels, industrial pollution, declining biodiversity, and sedimentation from shipping routes.
Impact Statement
The motion did not formally alter the legal status of the Wadden Sea. However, following the motion, Dutch and international NGOs began collaborating on policy analyses and public advocacy campaigns exploring the feasibility of codifying the Wadden Sea’s rights into law. Members of Parliament proposed investigating the possibility of granting ‘Rights of Nature’ to the Wadden Sea in 2018 and 2022.
Involved Organizations
Related Initiatives
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Alex Putzer, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2026. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/special-rights-unesco-world-heritage-wadden-sea/.
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