Integrated coastal zone management:: Case study Rugen-Hiddensee

The district of Migen comprises the islands of Migen and Hiddensee. It is proposed here for a case study of Integrated Coastal Zone Management. Within Germany, it is unique in the identity of the administrative and the biogeographical unit. The uniqueness is highlighted by the ratio of the area size of 973 km(2) and the coastline of more than 600 km. Both facts argue for using this example as a coastal zone management case study. In 1999, the European Union defined "Common Problems in the Coastal Zone", such as unplanned development, a decline of traditional, environmentally-compatible sectors, coastal erosion and historical mistakes, to be frequently occurring reasons for coastal management programmes. Besides these rather general reasons, Rugen and Hiddensee exhibit some special conditions which may render the district a promising object: they have an inventory of nearly all coastline types of the German Baltic coast, and all types of coastal dynamics arc represented. There is a high nature conservation potential, and most of the area is protected by several different regulations. A high exploitation pressure (tourism, agriculture, traffic) causes a high pressure for action. Many well-known scientists are not only engaged, but they also co-operate well with the administration even today. The coastal morphology and coastal processes are well-known and resemble those discussed in the international literature so that their application to coastal management may find international attention. Finally, the existing coastal protection master plan of the federal state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern starts with a well-balanced view of the role of nature conservation and natural coastal development in the coastal management. However, approaches to decisions between strategic positions such as pushing-forward, defence, dynamical defence and retreat, as well as the associations of these options to local problem areas, are lacking more than ever. If we agree with the European Commission that Integrated Coastal Zone Management is a dynamic, continuous and iterative process to promote the sustainable management of coastal zones, the tasks of scientists are put into the second row as soon as they have completed their work in the basic sciences, finished their projects and case studies and are ready to accompany the continuous and iterative work of the planning offices and administrations.