The Danish Society for Nature Conservation
DN
Our vision is: •a sustainable society with a rich and diverse nature •a clean and healthy environment
ID: 384365314480-89
Lobbying Activity
27 Jul 2022
Recent events and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have put a new emphasis on the overdue development of renewable energy in the European Union, that is needed in order to achieve our climate targets. We welcome these new ambitions, but appeal to the policy makers that the expansion of renewable energies must not be achieved at the expense of biodiversity. The world is not only in a climate crisis, but also in a biodiversity crisis.
Read full responseResponse to Extension of the access to waters regime under the Common Fisheries Policy
31 Aug 2021
Please see attachement for full submission
DN welcomes the Commission’s proposal to further extend by ten years the derogation for the 12 nautical mile zone of Member States (territorial waters) from the general equal access rule for Union fishing vessels to Union waters and resources. In Denmark many of the most biologically sensitive areas or important marine habitats and species are located along the coastal zone and within the 12 nautical miles (hereafter nm), for example of the circa 100 partially or fully marine Natura 2000-sites and MSFD MPAs (marine protected areas designated under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive) found in Danish waters, covering ca. 19 % in total, only 4 areas are located in their entirety outside of 12nm, with a further 8 areas partially outside 12 nm, meaning the vast majority of protected areas are located within the 12 nm in Danish waters. In the majority of cases fishing represents the biggest threat to those habitats and species, and it is therefore of paramount importance that Denmark (and all the other member states) has the legal possibility to restrict fishing, both of national vessels but also from other member states, in order to conserve important habitats/species and even restore habitats lost due to fishing activities.
DN equally wishes to express its grave concern regarding access to Danish coastal waters as laid out in Annex to the Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013, as regards restrictions to the access to Union waters. In particular, DN wishes to highlight the very problematic access to Danish coastal waters to the Belgian and Dutch fleet which use beam trawls. Beam trawling in the Danish coastal waters along the North Sea and Skagerrak is extremely destructive to the natural habitats which consist mainly of reefs and sandbanks at different depths, as well bubbling reefs and deep soft bottom habitats such as Sea-pen and Burrowing Megafauna Communities, some of which are protected under the Habitats Directive. In addition, fisheries using beam trawl push out the traditional low impact fishing practises, which have a long tradition along the northern Danish coast. In addition to, as already stated, supporting the Commission’s proposal to further extend by ten years the derogation for the 12 nautical mile zone of Member States (territorial waters) from the general equal access rule for Union fishing vessels to Union waters and resources, we also call upon the Commission to exclude from the Annex the access to Danish coastal waters to the Belgian and Dutch fishery after cod and flat fish as these use beam trawl or alternatively introduce a ban on beam trawling (such as under the technical measures regulation). A ban on beam trawling would be a win-win for the marine ecosystems, the seafloor, for the low impact coastal fishermen and an important tool in EU’s and Denmark’s fight against the climate crisis and its adverse impacts, since we would support the sea’s crucial ability to store carbon dioxide while taking steps towards fulfilling our requirements in the WFD, MSFD and Habitats Directive.
Read full responseMeeting with Claes Bengtsson (Cabinet of Commissioner Margrethe Vestager)
10 Feb 2016 · European Environmental Issues