Press Releases overview of the Institute for Coastal Research

Oil spill in the Wadden Sea! Which areas are especially at risk?

Germany’s Wadden Sea is a unique and very sensitive ecosystem that would be severely impacted by a serious shipping accident. That’s why it’s important for response teams to be able to react quickly and effectively to accidents that could cause widespread pollution. To make this possible, comprehensive precautionary measures need to be planned in advance. Thanks to its extensive precautionary planning activities, the Central Command for Maritime Emergencies (CCME) in Cuxhaven can quickly identify which areas of the Wadden Sea should get top-priority protection following an accident. To do so, the CCME uses an operational system developed by the Institute for Coastal Research at the GKSS Research Centre in Geesthacht. This system has now been upgraded and given the designation "Sensitivity Grid German North Sea II".

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