How Wales can learn from the Netherlands who are world leaders in conservation
ITV Wales' Ruth Dodsworth went to the Netherlands to find out more
The Netherlands have been world leaders in conservation and in a recent Nature Recovery Plan for Wales, the work done there was cited as a good model for Wales to follow.
So how can we here in Wales learn from the success story of Nature in the Netherlands?
Until just a few years ago, Lake Markermeer, just outside Amsterdam was in trouble.
The 700 square kilometre freshwater Lake had lost most of its natural shores to land reclamation, and fish and bird populations were in steep decline.
But they're working to reverse this.
Marker Wadden is one of the biggest nature restoration projects in western Europe.
Back in 2016, Dutch conservation organisation, Natuurmonumenten started a project aiming to restore an area of up to 100 sqaure kilometres.
Since then, an artificial archipelago has been created and seven hand built islands have risen from the lake bed with the aim bringing nature back to the area and restoring biodiversity.
Elsa Pater is a ranger at the site and keeps a watchful eye on the wildlife. She's amazed how quickly nature has settled in to its new surroundings.
"It was made from materials from the bottom of the lake - so sand and clay", she said.
"In 2017 the first part of land came above water and even when the machines were here working, the first birds were breeding already.
"It was a positive feeling of what we can do. Not only protect the nature that we already have but also to build something new to help nature and ourselves.
Ms Pater continued: "People are happy here. Sometimes people are worries about whats happening around the world, how we are no longer that connected to nature or letting it happen so nature disappears - this is a pace where we get help again.
"What they see around here is proof that it works and that you don't have to be an ecologist or biologist to understand that there is so much life around here."
The Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO KAAW) perform leading ecological research on individual organisms, populations, ecological communities and ecosystems.
With about 200 people, NIOO is one of the largest institutes within the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts & Sciences (KNAW).
Academics there say this project proves that its not too late to fix damage made to our biodiversity.
Geert de Snoo, Director of the Netherlands Institute of Ecology, said: "The Netherlands has a very dense population.
"A lot of people are living here together with a lot of animals as well so its quite crowded here so the consequence is that biodiversity has gone down for decades and now we are trying to boost biodiversity again.
"Every contribution counts because its a world wide problem. We can not safeguard biodiversity in the tropical areas.
"We also need it around us for the ecosystem services and what we've learned in the Netherlands is that you've got to do it from small to big things to byuing land from farmers, from other people, turning them into nature areas, connect nature areas.
"And also safeguard the quality of it to look forward and try to work with nature instead of looking backwards at what was there in the past."
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