Protection of marine waters in EU member states

Protection of marine waters is one of the key tasks imposed on EU member states in the area of environmental protection. Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, in force since 2008, established a framework for Community action in the field of marine environmental policy (known as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, or MSFD).

Protection of marine waters – necessary documents

EU member states are required to develop and update strategies for their marine waters. Each country’s marine strategy should consist of several key documents to ensure the achievement of Good Environmental Status (GES) of the marine environment. They are:

1. Marine Assessment(Article 8 Report – Initial Assessment:
   • Analysis of the current state of the marine environment;
   • Assessing the impact of human activities on marine ecosystems;
   • Identification of key environmental pressures and impacts;
2. Determination of GoodEnvironmental Status of the Marine Environment (GES)(Article 9 Report – Good Environmental Status Criteria):
   • Description and delineation of specific criteria and characteristics that determine when marine waters are in good condition;
   • compliance with MSFD’s 11 descriptors (e.g., biodiversity,
   • Eutrophication, marine waste, underwater noise);
3. Setting EnvironmentalTargets (Article 10 Report – Environmental Targets):
   • Setting quantitative and qualitative targets related to marine improvement;
   • Developing indicators to monitor progress;
4. Marine EnvironmentalMonitoring Program (Article 11 Report – Monitoring Programs):
   • A set of measures to monitor the state of the marine environment;
   • A system for collecting data on water status, species, habitats and pressures on marine ecosystems;
5. Programme of Measures for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment(Article 13 Report – Programme of Measures):
   • A set of measures to improve the marine environment;
   • activities may include, but are not limited to, regulations, bans, cleanup programs, fishing restrictions, educational activities, etc…;
6. Implementation reports and progress assessments:
   • regular reports to the European commission on the implementation of the maritime strategy;
   • Program updates based on new data and research.

Member states are required to update their maritime strategies every six years and report progress to the European Commission. Each cycle includes:

• new marine assessment;
• updating environmental goals;
• Aligning action programs with progress.

With the RDSM, EU countries have a common structure for action to protect marine ecosystems and reduce pressures such as eutrophication, chemical pollution, marine waste and underwater noise.

Summary of the development of action program updates in the EU’s second planning cycle

On February 4, the European Commission published a report summarizing updates to the Marine Strategy Framework Directive’s required marine water programs. The Commission’s assessment indicates progress toward achieving the good environmental status required under the MSFD, particularly with regard to marine waste. However, there are still significant gaps in the action programs submitted by member states to reduce marine pollution and restore biodiversity.

The report presents the key results of the Commission’s evaluation of second action programs. It covers 2046 measures related to all marine regions in the countries covered by the report, as well as important factors affecting marine ecosystems. It should be noted here, however, that the evaluation was based on reports submitted by 17 countries, so not all 22 that were required to submit them.

Although actions have been proposed for all factors affecting marine ecosystems, some are more prevalent than others, mainly waste and pollution. Many actions also aim to better protect species and restore habitats, but effective measures to protect non-commercial fish, cephalopods, turtles and pelagic habitats are still lacking.

The analysis will be part of the European Water Resilience Strategy announced by President Ursula von der Leyen in the 2024-2029 Policy Guidelines.

Overall, the actions taken by member states are partially meeting pollution reduction needs, but looking at the situation more closely, there are apparent discrepancies. Initiatives to reduce marine debris are yielding promising results, as shown by a recent report published by the Joint Research Center, but those on nutrients, chemical pollution and underwater noise remain inadequate.

Progress in designing and implementing effective marine biodiversity restoration efforts has been limited, with two exceptions: protecting the integrity of the seabed and reducing pressure from alien species. Although climate change is not directly addressed in the directive, marine strategies provide a good framework for monitoring its effects.

Many of the activities included in the programs stem from EU and national legislation, as well as international agreements and other relevant frameworks. In the end, almost half of the measures were designed to achieve good environmental status in accordance with the MSFD, promoting clean, healthy and productive seas. This represents a significant increase compared to the first programs of measures evaluated in 2018.

Actions are moderately consistent within a given maritime region, with Baltic Sea member states showing a higher level of consistency than others.

To what extent and by when the measures will reduce damage to the marine environment and help achieve good environmental status remains difficult to determine.

The Commission’s key recommendations to member states include:

• Increasing the level of ambition and accelerating action to achieve the goals of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD);
• Implement additional measures to reduce gaps, persistent environmental problems such as nutrient pollution, chemicals and underwater noise, and to protect and restore marine species and habitats;
• Increase investment and ensure sufficient funding for action programs;
• Introduce governance mechanisms that support the development and implementation of ambitious, consistent, coordinated, equitable and effective programs.

The Commission’s evaluation of the action programs, an accompanying staff working paper and country-specific recommendations were published along with the Commission’s report on the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the Floods Directive.

The aggregate report for all member states is available in the EC Document Library on the CIRCABC platform.

An abbreviated summary of the evaluation results in the form of a Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the Commission’s evaluation of the programs of measures implemented by Member States, updated pursuant to Article 17 of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (2008/56/EC) is available on EUR-Lex, also in Polish.

How was the evaluation of the action program reported by Poland?

The overall summary of the report submitted by Poland indicated that the Second Action Program was found to be adequate to address pressures affecting Poland’s marine environment and contributes to the achievement of good environmental status (GES) and our country’s goals.

Among the strengths of the Polish report, the EC pointed to a good cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) for the proposed actions and their use in setting priorities. The impact of climate change was adequately analyzed, especially in the context of eutrophication, commercial fishing and biodiversity. Poland actively participated in working groups at the regional level, reinforcing the transboundary nature of the Polish program of measures.

Actions on eutrophication, contaminants present in fish and seafood, marine debris, noise, biodiversity, trophic networks, seabed integrity, commercial fishing and alien species were assessed as adequate to address environmental pressures.

On the other hand, it was pointed out that Poland has not provided enough detail on the financial resources provided for the implementation of the new cycle of activities, and social issues do not seem to have been fully addressed. Measures concerning chemical pollution and hydrographic conditions were assessed as only moderately adequate to counteract pressures.

Based on the information contained in the action program, Poland’s commitment to implementing the second cycle was assessed as high. A detailed country report for Poland is available under the CIRCABC platform.

The conclusions of experts compiling evaluations of planning documents are not always clear. On the one hand, reference to the issue of climate change was indicated as a strength in the general summary, but already in the detailed assessment it was described as moderately addressed. As was the topic of reference to other documents and policies, which was described as very weak, despite the fact that links to EU legal acts, in particular the Water Framework Directive (WFD), the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) and the Habitat and Bird Directives, were analyzed and mentioned in the report to the EC.

However, there was a lack of additional information on the mechanisms and results of cooperation, which makes it difficult to understand how activities are coordinated and to identify synergies and effects on the final list of measures. This was an issue indicated in the evaluation of many countries, so one can conclude that the EC’s expectations were not clarified in this area, and were not indicated in the available guides and guidelines.

Attention was also drawn to the issue of funding, which is problematic for all planning documents being developed in the country, especially those related to water management. The EC’s evaluation pointed out that while funding sources were clearly listed and the process of allocating funds explained, no details were provided on the specific amounts mobilized from each source. Such information could have provided better insight into the priorities, as well as the sectors and individual features to which funding was directed. These are elements for improvement in future planning cycles.

In many places in the report, the detailed gap analysis for the reasons for the failure to achieve environmental goals under the various status and pressure characteristics was positively evaluated. Interesting and well-described proposals for new measures to improve environmental quality were also pointed out, as well as the issue of exceptions when environmental goals cannot be achieved in the near term. As in the first planning cycle, the economic analysis carried out and the prioritization of measures were positively evaluated. Most important, of course, is the overall assessment of the submitted report, which is good and confirms the fulfillment of the obligations imposed on Poland.

Status of the country’s marine conservation program update

The draft update of the Marine Protection Program was developed by PGW WP National Water Board in 2021. A three-month public consultation was conducted from July to October 2021. In accordance with the procedure indicated in the Water Law, the update of the Marine Waters Protection Program (aPOWM) was agreed with the members of the Council of Ministers on August 22, 2022, and then the document was submitted on September 7, 2022. European Commission. According to Article 161(11) of the Water Law, the program is considered adopted if the European Commission does not object within six months of its submission.

In this case, the deadline was March 7, 2023. Unfortunately, since then, the aPOWM regulation has still not been adopted. Despite the initial agreement by key ministries (agriculture, maritime, environment) on the draft document, at the stage of the legislative procedure of the draft regulation, they brought their doubts to its content. Part of the procedure over the course of nearly 2 years was repeated 2 or 3 times. The only thing that remains is the hope that this time it will finally end in success and the document will be accepted for further implementation by the entities obliged to implement the measures. Unfortunately, the prolonged procedure shortens the time for the actual implementation of the measures indicated in the aPOWM. Details of the legislative process and the consulted documents are available on the website of the Government Legislation Center.

Summary of evaluation of action programs required to protect marine waters

The submitted evaluation of action programs prepared within the framework of the 2nd planning cycle of the implementation of the ICZM shows that, in general, Member States are improving their actions and plans in the area of marine water protection. In general, current European policy takes into account and emphasizes environmental issues, including the seas, if only in the form of the European Green Deal, where the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems, the promotion of measures to reduce water and soil pollution, or the improvement of waste management, among others, have been identified as overriding priorities.

In addition, the adopted EU Biodiversity Strategy, the Pollution Eradication Action Plan and the Marine Action Plan are key European policy instruments, implementing the goals of both the European Green Deal and many existing directives. Importantly, the Marine Strategy Framework Directive is part of a broader water resilience program currently under development at the EC. This definitely provides an opportunity to strengthen efforts in the area of improving marine water protection. Poland faces quite a challenge, but the most important thing is to start work as soon as possible and gradually move towards the set goals.