Protecting seas and coasts

The protection of marine and coastal areas is one of ten fields of action in the Federal Action Plan on Nature-based Solutions for Climate and Biodiversity (ANK). The Centre of Competence for Nature-based Climate Action (KNK) provides advice about funding options and networking for stakeholders.

Marine ecosystems have a key role to play in climate change mitigation and biodiversity. When intact, seas and their interconnected habitats – such as seagrass beds, salt marshes, kelp forests or ocean-floor sediment – are able to store large quantities of carbon. In addition, they also store heat, strongly affect weather patterns, and offer habitats for a wide range of highly diverse animal and plant species. 

The state of play for seas and coasts in Germany

Both the North Sea and the Baltic Sea have a poor conversation status. Overuse, pollution and excessive heating due to climate change are altering the living conditions in these waters. Marine ecosystems are heavily impacted and are therefore now less resilient. For example, the thousands of square kilometres of seagrass beds originally found in the Baltic Sea have shrunk to a third of their size, with only ten percent of these beds now left in the North Sea. 

What action can be taken to strengthen seas and coasts?

Nature-based climate action aims to strengthen the ecosystems in the North Sea and Baltic Sea by measures that include protecting and restoring salt marshes along coastlines and seagrass beds in the seas themselves. Research projects are also being used to investigate how kelp forests can mitigate climate change and explore carbon accounting for marine sediments and biotopes. The Centre of Competence for Nature-based Climate Action helps to develop knowledge within this field of action and networks relevant actors together while providing advice on appropriate funding options.