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.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 6, criterion 2. This dataset describes and maps the physical disturbance to the seabed in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS) between 2010 and 2021. The dataset combines different layers of human activities leading to a disturbance of the seabed, including 'soft' beach and foreshore nourishments, dredging and dumping, sand extraction, fisheries, burial of cables, war ammunition stocking and construction of wind farms. The area disturbed is mapped and quantified per year and per activity, and plotted on the predominant broad-scale benthic habitat types of the EUSeaMap 2023. Infield cables from wind farms and Elia cables (NEMO and MOG) are not shown due to mutual agreements. This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 6, criterion 1. This dataset describes and maps the physical loss of the seabed in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS) between 2010 and 2021. The dataset combines different layers of human activities leading to a loss of the seabed, including 'hard' coastal defence structures, ports, measuring poles and radar station, protection of pipelines and cables, construction of wind farms, and wrecks and other obstacles. The area lost is mapped and quantified per year and per activity, and plotted on the predominant broad-scale benthic habitat types of the EUSeaMap 2023.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 2, criterion 1. This dataset lists the newly-introduced species encountered in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS) between 2016 and 2021, combining dedicated non-indigenous species (NIS) surveys of artificial hard substrates with incidental NIS records collected during the soft-sediment and epibenthos monitoring programmes.

The Royal Decree of 20 March 2026 establishing the marine spatial plan for the period 2026 to 2034 in the Belgian marine areas defines 1 cultural heritage (wrecks) zones: Protected shipwrecks (Art. 26§1). It replaces the 2020 Marine Spatial Plan. Please refer to the Belgian official gazette ("Moniteur belgeBelgisch Staatsblad") for official reference information.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 8, criterion 2. This dataset reports the prevalence of external fish diseases in dab (Limanda limanda) in the Belgian part of the North Sea, as an indicator of the adverse effects of contaminants.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 1, criterion 6. This dataset reports on phytoplankton and zooplankton communities in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS), including community composition, diversity, biomass and abundance, as an indicator of pelagic habitat condition.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 1, criterion 1. It reports the mortality rate of marine mammals, in particular harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), from incidental bycatch in the Belgian part of the North Sea, combining strandings investigations, reported incidental catches and aerial abundance surveys.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 1, criterion 3. This dataset reports the breeding success (population demographic characteristics) of benthic-feeding, pelagic-feeding, surface-feeding and wading birds breeding along the Belgian coast.

This dataset is part of the 2024 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 7, criterion 1. This dataset describes the zones that are subject to noticeable permanent alteration of the hydrographic conditions due to human activities and man-made infrastructures for the time period 1992-2022. The data format is shapefiles and includes the zone area (m²) as attribute.

This dataset is part of the 2018 Belgian submission for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) linked to descriptor 8, criterion 3. This dataset gives an overview of the observed slicks during aerial survey operations of the Belgian part of the North Sea (2011-2016). Related to significant acute pollution, it includes the observations linked to the Flinterstar incident in 2015. Besides this, all observations of illegal discharges of MARPOL (International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships) annex I and II substances are included as an additional dataset.