Muslingeskrab to end in Isefjord by 2034

Denmark will phase out mussel dredging in Isefjord and two other marine areas by no later than 30 September 2034 under a binding order issued by the Ministry of the Environment.

Published for public consultation on 3 July, the decree follows an agreement reached last July between the former government and a parliamentary majority that included Social Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives, Socialist People’s Party, Red-Green Alliance and others. The order covers Isefjord in north-west Zealand, the western Baltic Sea and the Danish straits.

Mussel dredging uses heavy iron gear dragged across the seabed to harvest blue mussels, a method scientists say destroys eelgrass beds and stirs up nutrient-rich silt that fuels algal blooms, oxygen depletion and turbid water.

“When you drag half a tonne of dredge with nets and mussels across the bottom, you rip up every last blade of eelgrass,” said Stiig Markager, professor of marine environment at Aarhus University. “Eelgrass is essential for restoring a healthy ecosystem in Isefjord.”

Ole Gunni Busck, deputy chair of the Danish Society for Nature Conservation in Odsherred, criticised the eight-year phase-out period as too slow. “Otherwise it will take far too long before the dredging that is wrecking the fjord’s water environment finally stops,” he said.

Busck argued that the livelihoods of a few commercial operators should not outweigh the broader ecological damage and benefits enjoyed by fishermen, residents and visitors. “We cannot accept that a handful of businesses should have such a disproportionate impact on nature and everyone else who depends on a healthy fjord,” he said.

Minister for the Environment Maria Reumert Gjerding of the Socialist People’s Party said she aimed to accelerate the phase-out but acknowledged that current law requires an eight-year notice period. “I am determined to find a way to make this happen much sooner,” she said. “We simply cannot accept an eight-year wait.”