Sustainability for Marine Regions

21 January 2022, by Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon

Photo: Hereon/S. Hartmann

Coasts and seas must recover from human utilization

The protection and sustainable use of the oceans and coasts is the focus of the current research mission of the German Marine Research Alliance (DAM). "CoastalFutures – future scenarios to promote sustainable use of marine areas " is one of seven projects in the mission. CEN researcher Prof. Corinna Schrum is leading the project, which is coordinated at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon.

“Utilizing the seas and coasts will become more extensive in the coming years and decades. This utilization will include measures for adaptation and for avoiding climate change. Our goal is to assess the consequences of this socially desirable development and to create effective protection strategies for these altered conditions,” says Prof. Corinna Schrum, Director of the Institute of Coastal Systems – Analysis and Modeling at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon. Schrum is also spokesperson for the mission.

A central goal of the project is the development of a model system for the North and Baltic Seas and their coastal areas. With the model, the scientists want to create a virtual environment in which the effects of climate change and human use on marine ecosystems can be studied. Together with partners from maritime management, stakeholders from industry and non-governmental organizations, future scenarios will be designed.

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research is funding the project with 5.5 million euros.