1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,160 For centuries, the ocean has been part of our lives. 2 00:00:08,160 --> 00:00:13,440 It is a source of food, a means of transport, a place to relax or to work. 3 00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:16,840 But today, the marine environment is under pressure. 4 00:00:16,840 --> 00:00:17,920 Shipping is growing. 5 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:21,920 The risk of pollution is increasing. 6 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:24,160 Tourism is expanding. 7 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:28,600 Climate change is worsening storms and erosion. 8 00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:33,160 Millions of jobs depend on the sea, with shipping and tourism at the forefront. 9 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:39,520 Nearly half of all Europeans live less than 50 kilometers away from it. 10 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:43,000 Maritime activities are a part of our history. 11 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:45,240 They are important in the present. 12 00:00:45,240 --> 00:00:50,080 They'll become even more important in the future in our globalized world. 13 00:00:50,080 --> 00:00:55,120 So far, these activities have been managed by separate policies, but the European Union 14 00:00:55,120 --> 00:01:00,680 is now calling for a more integrated approach. 15 00:01:00,680 --> 00:01:05,760 We want to get the maximum value and benefit from Europe's maritime dimension. 16 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:12,240 And we can do this through a new, integrated and sustainable maritime policy. 17 00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:16,360 And here are some practical examples. 18 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:20,360 The wind blows harder offshore than it does on land. 19 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:28,120 Our wind turbines produce 20 to 25 percent more electricity than their onshore cousins. 20 00:01:28,120 --> 00:01:33,200 The European Union wants to diversify its sources of energy and also combat climate 21 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:36,820 change by promoting renewable energy. 22 00:01:36,820 --> 00:01:43,320 Europe is already leading the world in wind turbines technology. 23 00:01:43,320 --> 00:01:48,360 More and more, new maritime activities, like the wind farms, will have to coexist with 24 00:01:48,360 --> 00:01:51,480 traditional ones such as fishing and shipping. 25 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:56,480 This can be seen in a British project. 26 00:01:56,480 --> 00:02:00,360 The Thames estuary is one of the selected zones. 27 00:02:00,360 --> 00:02:05,400 One project has already been completed, and other larger ones are in preparation. 28 00:02:05,400 --> 00:02:12,640 In 2010, 440 wind turbines could be installed here. 29 00:02:12,640 --> 00:02:16,240 The designers of the project have much to think about. 30 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:20,640 Environmental repercussions on wildlife, fishing activities and coastal tourism have 31 00:02:20,640 --> 00:02:23,520 to be taken into consideration. 32 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:27,440 We've now seen grey seals back actually inside the wind farm, and we have a lot of birds 33 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:31,320 now nesting actually on the turbines themselves. 34 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:40,520 So the impact to the environment, from a wildlife point of view, I think is very slim. 35 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:45,240 Not all would agree, but the wind turbines already coexist with tourism in this small 36 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:48,040 coastal town. 37 00:02:48,040 --> 00:02:53,600 The London Port Authority is concerned with a different conflict. 38 00:02:53,600 --> 00:02:57,800 Vessels entering or leaving the estuary are monitored and guided by the operations centre 39 00:02:57,800 --> 00:03:00,960 at Gravesend in Kent. 40 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:05,760 One study has underlined the risks of interference with ship's radar. 41 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:13,200 The problem lies in the effects on the radar image on the ship, or the possibility of the 42 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:18,960 radar image on the ship being disturbed by the presence of the wind farm, and other targets, 43 00:03:18,960 --> 00:03:25,200 other ships, yachts, buoys becoming invisible to that ship. 44 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:31,280 A working group made up of turbine designers and port authorities has been set up. 45 00:03:31,280 --> 00:03:36,880 As these examples show, there are potential conflicts between different uses of the sea. 46 00:03:36,880 --> 00:03:42,200 These conflicts may require spatial planning to minimise them. 47 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:46,720 If there is competition for space, then it is important that decisions are taken in order 48 00:03:46,720 --> 00:03:54,160 to try to maximise the use of space in a sustainable manner, but at the same time also trying to 49 00:03:54,160 --> 00:03:57,100 establish priorities. 50 00:03:57,100 --> 00:04:01,920 Spatial planning will be crucial in the European port expansion projects, one of the challenges 51 00:04:01,920 --> 00:04:06,440 to be faced by the maritime sector in the years to come. 52 00:04:06,440 --> 00:04:12,960 We're on the quayside at Europe's biggest port, Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. 53 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:18,360 It now covers 5,000 hectares, from the heart of the city to the North Sea. 54 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:21,160 Ports play a key role in the Union's economy. 55 00:04:21,160 --> 00:04:25,080 Almost all of our trade with the rest of the world passes through them. 56 00:04:25,080 --> 00:04:32,040 The increase in shipping is forcing ports to modernise. 57 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:42,320 For the last nine years, a team in Rotterdam has been working on an expansion project. 58 00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:48,720 The ports need to be extended because with globalisation, goods traffic will increase. 59 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:53,520 But there is a lack of space around European ports, and their projects may well impinge 60 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:56,600 on other coastal activities. 61 00:04:56,600 --> 00:05:01,720 Consultation is needed to bring all the players together to find compromises. 62 00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:07,120 In Rotterdam, different views have been expressed, but many inhabitants welcome the extension. 63 00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:44,720 Many people worry about the consequences for the environment, in particular air pollution. 64 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:49,640 Thousands of trucks from all over Europe transit via Rotterdam every day. 65 00:05:49,640 --> 00:05:55,680 The European Union would prefer to see traffic by rail and by ship along the coasts increase. 66 00:05:55,680 --> 00:06:00,200 To deal with the environmental impact, rail infrastructure is being developed and the 67 00:06:00,200 --> 00:06:03,200 port of Rotterdam will finance the creation of nature reserves. 68 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:10,200 The Maasvlakte 2 will be built in the Voordelta, which is a protected habitat area. 69 00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:16,200 According to European regulations and the Dutch law, it must be compensated for. 70 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:18,200 For this purpose, we are laying a sea reserve. 71 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:23,200 It is more than ten times the size of the Maasvlakte itself, and 35 hectares of new 72 00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:26,200 dunes are being built at Hoek van Holland. 73 00:06:26,200 --> 00:06:31,200 A few kilometres to the south, the fishermen of Stellendam are still worried. 74 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:36,200 The extension will reduce the size of their fishing grounds. 75 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:39,200 It could also change the currents used by fish larvae. 76 00:06:39,200 --> 00:06:43,200 They fear for their jobs and are expressing their concerns. 77 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:07,200 It could also lead to increased competition with fishing fleets from neighbouring countries. 78 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:13,200 In fact, the extension of the port of Rotterdam will have many repercussions beyond the Netherlands. 79 00:07:13,200 --> 00:07:18,200 It is actually quite common that a decision taken on a maritime matter in one country 80 00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:20,200 also affects many others. 81 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:24,200 Commissioner Borge says the same thing about policymaking. 82 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:30,200 In determining, so to say, the interrelationship between the different sectors and also in 83 00:07:30,200 --> 00:07:36,200 determining the interrelationship between decisions which are taken at a union level, 84 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:40,200 decisions which are taken at a national level and decisions which are taken at a regional level, 85 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:44,200 it is important to have a coordinating approach. 86 00:07:44,200 --> 00:07:49,200 The European Union is therefore developing a new, more integrated and more concerted 87 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:52,200 vision of maritime policy. 88 00:07:52,200 --> 00:07:57,200 One that would maximise economic benefits in an environmentally sustainable manner.