Introduction
A new 18.5 km long fixed link for rail and road traffic between Denmark and Germany across the Fehmarnbelt is being planned to improve connectivity between Scandinavia and Central Europe. This link will connect Puttgarden on the island of Fehmarn in Germany and Rødbyhavn at the Danish island Lolland. The new link will result in a more energy efficient transport system, as the route is 160 km shorter for railway freight transports compared to the existing route Hamburg – Jutland – Copenhagen.
The Project and the Vision
The immersed tunnel was selected as the preferred solution among others although it requires extensive dredging works for the tunnel trench and associated structures. This chosen solution has a number of benefits and opportunities such as:
- The immersed tunnel has no permanent impacts on birds and harbour porpoise, which use the belt as migration path, transport corridor or as a feeding ground
- The immersed tunnel will have no permanent impacts on the marine environment as there are no permanent changes to the seabed, nor to currents, which could have unintended consequences on water exchange
- Dredging for an immersed tunnel will produce up to 19 million m3 surplus sediment and this provides an opportunity to create re-establish areas with new habitats and landscapes for wildlife and recreational use. Some of these environmental values were lost during the construction of major dikes and reclamation works in the early 20th century
- The tunnel will not present a risk of ship obstruction and collision in the heavily travelled area with app. 80.000 ships pr. year
The re-use of the surplus material from dredging of the tunnel trench will allow for the redevelopment of the coastal landscape primarily on the Danish side, with the following features:
- Artificial beaches. Two artificial beaches are planned on the Danish side. The beaches are designed in their equilibrium orientation by fixed structures. On German side, a minor land reclamation is planed with one beach
- An artificial lagoon with two fixed openings east of the tunnel portal is planned. The lagoon includes wetlands, a major recreational island and a small sea bird island. The vegetation in the nature and wetland areas will be allowed to develop naturally, which will enhance the biodiversity of this environment
- Protected areas. A rubble mound seawall and rubble mound revetments will protect the proposed landing of the tunnel. The structures are designed to minimize the visual impacts of the tunnel portal
- Cliffs. The reclaimed area east of the reclamation area on the Danish side will be filled to produce a “natural” cliff and the eroded sand will be transported eastward by the predominant littoral transport and helps stabilizing the beaches
- Reef - 25 ha hard bottom will be re-established after natural reefs were exploited through stone fishing
Conclusions
The Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link project is an outstanding example for the application of the Working with Nature principles for large infrastructure projects. The re-development of the coastal landscape was identified as win-win opportunity that involved extensive stakeholder involvement, survey campaigns to understand the surrounding nature and environment, and an innovative design basis that fed back into the consultation process to identify the option that met the project objectives and visions.
The Working with Nature findings of this project can be summarised as follows:
- Fitting the fixed link into the physical /rural situation on both sides of the Fehmarnbelt with a minimum of disturbance of the landscape
- Create new nature and leisure areas using 19 million m3 surplus sediment for land reclamation
- Create beaches and lagoon area with associated facilities for the benefit of tourism and locals
- Create new artificial reefs with stones, that can establish new habitats for fish, birds and marine mammals and thereby enhancing biodiversity
- Formerly lost landscape and nature areas re-established
The project represents a win- win situation achieved through a detailed assessment of the environment, innovative design and extensive stakeholder engagement.
References
- Mangor K. 2011. Designet Natur – fortællingen om et nyt kystlandskab på Lolland og andre kunstige kystmiljøer. Wiljelm +10 Natur i Danmark Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark,18 November 2011
- CEDA Information Paper, ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PROCEDURES, April 2015
- PIANC Position Paper. Working with Nature, October 2008; revised January 2011.
- A guide for applying working with nature to navigation Infrastructure projects. PIANC Workgroup EnviCom 176
- https://femern.com/en/Construction-work/Production-site-at-Rodbyhavn/New-recreational-coastal-areas-to-evolve