In Sweden's west coast archipelago you find the tiny Koster islands. As of September 2009, these two tourist magnets and the sea around them make up Sweden’s first marine national park, 100 years after Europe’s first national parks were created in Sweden.
Harbor seals enjoy the sunny life around Koster. Photo: Bengt Frizell
In the summer, Koster swarms with tourists. Many like the place so much that they want buy a house there, and property prices have skyrocketed. What draws everyone here? Probably the sparkling ocean and beautiful scenery, in combination with the fact that Koster is one of the sunniest places in Sweden. But the islands have even more to offer if you take a look under the surface — of the sea, that is.
A world of its own
“You can never imagine it if you haven’t seen it — to dive down and meet this world is amazing!” says Klas Hjelm, head of department at the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (Naturskyddsföreningen). He is enthusiastic about Kosterhavet becoming a national park, and so he should be; his organization has strived for this to happen for more than 20 years.
Kosterhavet harbors thousands of incredible plants and animals. Photo: Mattias Sköld
It’s the unique marine wildlife of the area that makes it worth protecting. Kosterhavet harbors 300 species that you won’t find anywhere else — Sweden’s only cold-water coral reef, for instance. Harbor seals and the gigantic basking shark might also be spotted here. With around 6,000 species in total, this is the most species-rich area in Sweden. It’s the special environment created by the Koster channel — running almost 220 yards (200 meters) deep in places — that explains the diversity.
From conflict to cooperation
The idea of protecting Kosterhavet as a national park goes back to the late 1980s. But at first, the locals weren’t exactly thrilled about the idea. Especially the fishermen were against it, for fear of losing their means of subsistence. The plans had to rest for a while, and weren’t brought up for real consideration again until a couple of years into the new millennium.
Sweden's King Carl XIV Gustaf (right) inaugurated the new national park and then explored the protected waters together with Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, who opened the Norwegian national park Yttre Hvaler, adjacent to Kosterhavet. Photo: Gunnar Seijbold/Government Offices
This time around, the population of Koster was more positive and has been much more involved in the process. According to Anders Tysklind, project manager at the County Administrative Board and park manager, the local backing is now firm.
And indeed, some year-round dwellers think the park will mean improvements for the islands: better maintenance and more job opportunities, as well as increased resources to deal with tourists and inform about the unique environment.
Mixed emotions
Others are more skeptical. Ove Ljungdahl, who runs a smokehouse on South Koster, says the population is divided. Some expect too much, he thinks. “Many think that a lot more people will move out here permanently now,” he says. “But they’ll need work, and they’ll need somewhere to stay. Not everyone can work in that park.”
Ursholmen in the Koster archipelago is the westernmost inhabited island in Sweden. The rounded rocks are typical of Bohuslän. Photo: Lasse Linusson/Scanpix
Barbro Tobiasson runs a kayak rental, and is also hesitant. ”I’m neither very positive nor very negative,” she says. “It might be good for entrepreneurs, but what will happen to the fishermen?”
Fisherman Håkan Johansson is worried that he and his colleagues won’t be able to continue their work as before, despite being promised this. “There will only be more regulations. I don’t think much good will come of it,” he says.
New deal
But project manager Tysklind is happy with the give-and-take process that has shaped the park guidelines. Some examples of new rules are a boat speed limit of 5 knots, and that you’ll only be allowed to stay two nights at the same spot when tenting, or anchoring.
However, fishing will not be regulated within the national park rules, but through a previous agreement that already uses environmentally adapted methods. Tysklind believes that sustainable fishing is best achieved via continued cooperation with the fishermen themselves. “There is a mutual understanding,” he says. “We can succeed with the conservation mission and make room for human activities too.”
Klas Hjelm of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation would have wanted slightly stricter rules for the new marine national park. Photo: The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation
Local management
And the locals will continue to have a say. Tysklind speaks of “adaptive stewardship” — a willingness to adjust along the way. In a new model of maintenance, the Koster delegation, with representatives from the involved municipalities, fishermen and local community organizations will make sure the area is maintained according to the guidelines.
But according to Klas Hjelm, consideration of local demands has made the rules slightly too pragmatic, especially as concerns fishing — some trawling for shrimps and crawfish will still be allowed. He emphasizes the importance of always making the protection of the unique marine world of Kosterhavet top priority.
Anna Sandelin
Anna Sandelin is a freelance journalist based in Stockholm, who spent many childhood summers in the Bohuslän archipelago. She especially loved lying at the bottom of her grandparents’ boat, listening to the sound of the engine while going out to sea.
The author alone is responsible for the opinions expressed in this article.
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