Netherlands. The Afsluitdijk is a dam created to protect the low-lying county from
flooding. By establishing the dam in 1932, the Zuiderzee bay was cut off from the
North Sea and Wadden Sea creating the fresh water lake IJsselmeer. The dam was
constructed of basalt stone on the Wadden Sea side. After 80 years, remarkable plant
species established on this artificial rocky slope, like Wild Cabbage (Brassica
oleracea var. oleracea), Sea Kale (Crambe maritima) and Sea Beet (Beta vulgaris
subsp. maritima), species that are rare in this area. Wild Cabbage is endemic to
coastal regions of western Europe and only a limited number wild populations are
known (Gustafsson and Lannér-Herrera 1997). As the Afsluitdijk needs to be
renovated to current standards for coastal protection, the entire dam is being renovated. Therefore, the basalt will be replaced by concrete, and the entire vegetation
cover will be removed. To protect the various plant species, the seeds are collected
before building starts to ensure the preservation of the plant genetic diversity. The
new concrete substrate is designed in such a way that it is fitted with small cracks and
spaces for the establishment of vegetation (and coastal fauna). The seeds
(or carefully bred offspring) will then be reintroduced on the renovated habitat.
5.6 Restoration Projects of Inland Saline Habitats
The ecological meaning and environmental conditions of salt lakes, inland salt
steppe, and continental alkali marshes including brackish reeds and halophytic
shrubland has been studied, mapped and assessed in many countries and regions.
In general, the uniqueness including endemic, rare and threatened plant and animal
species has often been proved during the last years or decades. According to Flora
Iberica (Castroviejo et al. 1993), for example different Limonium species such as
L. album, L. aragonense, L. dichotomum, L. erectum, L. hibericum,
L. longebracteatum, L. paui, L. ruizii, L. soboliferum, L. squarrosum,
L. stenophyllum, L. toletanum, L. viciosoi, and some more are Iberian endemics
which are confined to inland saline or alkaline depressions and borders of lakes
(Castroviejo et al. 1993). However, also critically endangered species such as
Sociable Lapwing (Vanellus gregarius) which has a relatively large range across
Northern Eurasia, Northeast Africa and India depend on or profit from the existence
of inland saline habitats. However, the breeding ground of this bird is much smaller
than the range of occurrence (IUCN 2019).
Moderate grazing, in some cases also mowing, removal of sod, and/or limitation
of strong visitor impact are identified as adequate instruments of nature conservation
policies. However, in many cases it is useful and cost-efficient to simply keep the
habitats untouched (e.g. Allen et al. 1997, Pardo et al. 2003, Ministerium für
Landwirtschaft, Naturschutz und Umwelt Thüringen 2005, Šefferová et al. 2008,
Balázs et al. 2014, Janssen et al. 2016 incl. fact sheet E 6.1 on Mediterranean inland
salt steppe).
Coastal Habitats, Shallow Seas and Inland Saline Steppes: Ecology,. . .
301
flooding. By establishing the dam in 1932, the Zuiderzee bay was cut off from the
North Sea and Wadden Sea creating the fresh water lake IJsselmeer. The dam was
constructed of basalt stone on the Wadden Sea side. After 80 years, remarkable plant
species established on this artificial rocky slope, like Wild Cabbage (Brassica
oleracea var. oleracea), Sea Kale (Crambe maritima) and Sea Beet (Beta vulgaris
subsp. maritima), species that are rare in this area. Wild Cabbage is endemic to
coastal regions of western Europe and only a limited number wild populations are
known (Gustafsson and Lannér-Herrera 1997). As the Afsluitdijk needs to be
renovated to current standards for coastal protection, the entire dam is being renovated. Therefore, the basalt will be replaced by concrete, and the entire vegetation
cover will be removed. To protect the various plant species, the seeds are collected
before building starts to ensure the preservation of the plant genetic diversity. The
new concrete substrate is designed in such a way that it is fitted with small cracks and
spaces for the establishment of vegetation (and coastal fauna). The seeds
(or carefully bred offspring) will then be reintroduced on the renovated habitat.
5.6 Restoration Projects of Inland Saline Habitats
The ecological meaning and environmental conditions of salt lakes, inland salt
steppe, and continental alkali marshes including brackish reeds and halophytic
shrubland has been studied, mapped and assessed in many countries and regions.
In general, the uniqueness including endemic, rare and threatened plant and animal
species has often been proved during the last years or decades. According to Flora
Iberica (Castroviejo et al. 1993), for example different Limonium species such as
L. album, L. aragonense, L. dichotomum, L. erectum, L. hibericum,
L. longebracteatum, L. paui, L. ruizii, L. soboliferum, L. squarrosum,
L. stenophyllum, L. toletanum, L. viciosoi, and some more are Iberian endemics
which are confined to inland saline or alkaline depressions and borders of lakes
(Castroviejo et al. 1993). However, also critically endangered species such as
Sociable Lapwing (Vanellus gregarius) which has a relatively large range across
Northern Eurasia, Northeast Africa and India depend on or profit from the existence
of inland saline habitats. However, the breeding ground of this bird is much smaller
than the range of occurrence (IUCN 2019).
Moderate grazing, in some cases also mowing, removal of sod, and/or limitation
of strong visitor impact are identified as adequate instruments of nature conservation
policies. However, in many cases it is useful and cost-efficient to simply keep the
habitats untouched (e.g. Allen et al. 1997, Pardo et al. 2003, Ministerium für
Landwirtschaft, Naturschutz und Umwelt Thüringen 2005, Šefferová et al. 2008,
Balázs et al. 2014, Janssen et al. 2016 incl. fact sheet E 6.1 on Mediterranean inland
salt steppe).
Coastal Habitats, Shallow Seas and Inland Saline Steppes: Ecology,. . .
301