Brussels, 17/05/2004 (Agence Europe) - A fifth of the enlarged European Union's coastline has been eroded due to human activity. The intensive development and use of sand for construction is the main cause. The high rise in sealevels, storms, and frequent floods are making the situation worse. According to a detailed study of the coast line of the Europe of 25, which the European Commission presented on Monday, the mean results are that sea is knawing away at the between 0.5 m and 2 metres of coastline a year, indeed 15 metres in some extreme cases. This has had dramatic effects on the environment (threatening natural habitats, wild fauna and flora) and human activities as it destroys houses, roads and tourist infrastructure, underlined the Commission on the eve of the international conference the Commission is organising on Tuesday in Brussels on the theme of "Living with Coastal Erosion in Europe: Sediment and Space for Sustainability". The results of the conference will be used to guide the Commission in elaborating the strategy for soil protection that it intends presenting in the Spring.
As well as the alarming observation it draws up, with acute variations between the countries (erosion rates: 37.8%, 28.6% in Greece; 25.5% in Belgium, as opposed to 2.4% in Sweden and 0.04% in Finland, the study formulates some recommendations. It is calling for more efforts to reconstitute the coasts by restoring the balance of the levels of sediment; the identification of zones with sedimentation processes, as well as "strategic sediment reservoirs" from which they can draw without abusing the natural balance; the taking into account of the cost of coastal erosion in planning and investment decisions: taking into account the worries of coastal erosion in environmental impact studies; better planning based on regional level sediment management.
The study was requested in 2001 by the Commission in response to the European Parliament's request following the evaluation of the social, economic and ecological impact of coastal erosion and the action needed to rectify it. It was carried out by a European consortium headed by the National Institute for the Management of Coastlines and the Sea Environment in the Netherlands".