ANP extension
ANNOUNCEMENTS•
Within six weeks, the cabinet must come up with a plan for nature compensation on Maasvlakte 2, the Rotterdam port expansion project. This was established by the Utrecht court in a lawsuit filed by naturalist organisations.
The nature compensation plan must come from Minister Van der Wal (Nature and Nitrogen). For example, the court suggests a ban on seabed fishing in the area. This involves fishing for species that live near the bottom.
Furthermore, according to the court, the Rotterdam Port Authority is in breach because the compensation “has not yet been properly implemented”. The Port Authority had previously stated that it could not provide compensation itself, because only the minister has the possibilities to do so.
“But the court did not allow the Port Authority to hide behind the minister in implementing the compensation,” the court ruled. Minister Van der Wal must ensure that the Port Authority correctly complies with the compensation.
Seven naturalist organizations went to court in April:
Maasvlakte 2 nature reserve is not protected enough: ‘The soil must be left alone’
The Second Maasvlakte was created between 2008 and 2013 for the expansion of the port of Rotterdam. The area was created in the North Sea, partly in a European protected nature reserve.
The reclamation was allowed by the Cabinet to continue, provided the nature lost to the project was compensated for. For example, it was necessary to designate resting places for animals in the area and limit fishing that disturbs the seabed.
But that fee was left behind after construction, seven declared nature organizations in April. Natuurmonumenten, the World Wildlife Fund and the Vogelbescherming, among others, therefore went to court jointly. They felt that the government and the Rotterdam Port Authority should step in to compensate for the damage to nature after all.
