Species protection
The Benelux Convention on Nature Conservation and Landscape Protection has concrete applications like the Border Park De Zoom-Kalmthoutse Heide (since 8 years today). This ecological network of 4000 hectares in the Belgium North province of Antwerp and the Dutch province of North Brabant is managed by a cross border policy in order to optimize the development of the area and measure it.
This project is a real success for the biodiversity and since two years, it is foreseen to expand the area and the concept to new other cross border spaces in line with the European network of natural areas Natura2000. This program has been set up in 1992 in order to restore the most important natural values of Europe and safeguard them for the next generations. Benelux act for it at many different levels, one of them is the Free Migration of Fish.
Indeed, some species of fish (like the Eel, Atlantic salmon and Sea Trout) have to migrate, move freely through water system, in order to get back to spawning areas. A serial of measures have been taken by the Benelux to eliminate bottlenecks and obstacles to this migration (like the setting up of fish ladders installed at principal dams in the Netherland and Wallonia. This program led to real concrete results, for example North Salmon come back in the Maas catchment basin has been recently noticed and is expected.
Arnaud GRIGNARD
