Beach Litter count data collected across 10 beaches of the Belgian coast in 2023 and 2024 by volunteers of the citizen science association Proper Strand Lopers. One of the key indicators of abundance, composition and trends of litter in the marine environment is the amount on beaches. OSPAR monitors litter on 100m stretches at over 70 beaches in the North-East Atlantic following common monitoring guidelines. The monitoring records litter in 112 predefined litter items in 11 types: Plastic / polystyrene, Metal, Paper and cardboard, Wood, Sanitary waste, Cloth, Rubber, Glass, Pottery/ceramics, Medical waste and Faeces.

The law of 13 June 1969 defines “Belgian Continental Shelf” as follows: the seabed and the subsoil of the marine areas adjacent to the Belgian coast but beyond the Belgian territorial sea.

This dataset represents main data about the cores of Belgian boreholes that are stored by the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. Data is distributed as shapefile with multiple meta-infomations such as unique borehole reference, depth, location, lithology and a link to access the core and lithological descriptions.

This dataset represents the location of the Princess Elizabeth zone in the Belgian Part of the North Sea as described in the Royal Decree of May 22th, 2019, establishing a marine spatial plan for the period 2020-2026. Art. 8. § 3.

The Royal Decree of 20 March 2026 establishing a marine spatial plan defines CIA Zone Art. 27. § 1 Please refer to the Belgian official gazette ("Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad") for official reference information.

The Royal Decree of 20 March 2026 establishing a marine spatial plan defines Oostdyck Radar Tower Art. 25. § 3 Please refer to the Belgian official gazette ("Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad") for official reference information.

The Royal Decree of 20 March 2026 establishing a marine spatial plan defines Seabed Integrity Zone_Top Art. 10. § 1.1°, Seabed Integrity Zone_Middle Art. 10. § 1.2°, Seabed Integrity Zone_Bottom Art. 10. § 1.3°, RAMSAR Art. 11, Zone with Ban on Bottom-Disturbing Recreational Fishing Art. 24. § 2, Flemish Banks Art. 8. § 1, Raan Flat Art. 8. § 3, SBZ1 Art. 8. § 5.1°, SBZ2 Art. 8. § 5.2°, SBZ3 Art. 8. § 5.3°, Marine Reserve_Top Art. 9. § 1.1°, Marine Reserve_Middle 2a Art. 9. § 1.2°, Marine Reserve_Middle 2b Art. 9. § 2, Marine Reserve_Bottom Art. 9. § 3 Please refer to the Belgian official gazette ("Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad") for official reference information.

The Royal Decree of 20 March 2026 establishing a marine spatial plan defines Dredging_S1 Art. 15. § 1.1°, Dredging_S2 Art. 15. § 1.2°, Dredging_Bridges and Roads Ostend Art. 15. § 1.3°, Dredging_Bridges and Roads Zeebrugge East Art. 15. § 1.4°, Dredging_Bridges and Roads Zeebrugge West Art. 15. § 1.5°, Dredging_Bridges and Roads Nieuwpoort Art. 15. § 1.6°, Dredging_Erosion Pit Zeebrugge Art. 15. § 1.7°, Dredging_Future Replacement S1 Art. 15. § 4.1°, Dredging_Second Future Replacement S1 Art. 15. § 4.2°, Dredging_Second Possible Replacement Zeebrugge East and Zeebrugge West Art. 15. § 6, Dredging_Possible Replacement Zeebrugge East and Zeebrugge West Art. 15. § 6, Dredging_Third Possible Replacement Zeebrugge East and Zeebrugge West Art. 15. § 6, Dredging_Future Replacement Bridges and Roads Nieuwpoort Art. 15. § 8 Please refer to the Belgian official gazette ("Moniteur belge/Belgisch Staatsblad") for official reference information.

This dataset is part of the 2018 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 1, criterion 3. Occurrence of breeding seabirds describes the observation of eight seabird species (Common tern, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Common Gull, Small Black-backed Gull, Yellow-legged gull, Big Stern and Little Stern) on the Belgian coast between 1992 and 2015.

This dataset represents the exact location of disused telecommunication cables installed in the Belgian Part of the North Sea.