EAA’s Swedish member-association Sportfiskarna, recently took part in a project aiming at restoring nature in the bay of Södra viken, Southeast of Sweden. In collaboration with WWF and the Södertälje Municipality, they built stone reefs outside the bay to block the waves from the ships traffic and restore the wildlife of the bay.
South of the Södertälje Harbour and Stockholm, you will find Södra viken, a beautiful natural bay that is part of the Öbacken-Bränninge nature reserve in Sweden.
Not so long ago, wildlife and coastal species were thriving in this natural environment. But with the rise of the ships traffic on their way to the port of Södertälje, unnatural erosion increased subsequently, and pikes, perch and more generally the benthic fauna and flora disappeared from the bay.
To restore the Bay’s vanished wildlife, Sportfiskarna, WWF and the Municipality of Södertälje partnered under the project “Recreate the vitality of the Baltic Sea”, funded by the Swedish Postcode Foundation. The project was undertaken with the assistance of Björn Almström, Researcher from the Lund University.
A stone reef was built just outside the bay aiming at breaking the waves from the traffic of the ships and at restoring a peaceful environment inside. In addition, reeds were replanted in the bay to improve the wildlife’s natural habitat.
Malin Kjellin, Project Manager for Sportfiskarna explains why the restoration of nature is so important: "Shallow vegetation-rich bays are important as spawning and nursery habitats for many fish species, not least predatory fish such as pike and perch, and it is therefore of great importance to both protect and recreate these environments. Nature-adapted erosion protection is one way, but for the greatest effect, these should be combined with reduced speeds in the fairways and an investment in vessels with hull shapes that cause less subsidence waves and swells."
Picture: Victor Sandberg