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DUNKERQUE-PORT: 2016 ESPO AWARD FINALIST
24th october 2016

The jury of the European Sea Ports Organization (ESPO) has revealed the five ports shortlisted for the 8th ESPO Award.

This year the prize, awarded in recognition of the social integration of European ports, is on the theme of "Nature in Ports". The 2016 edition will reward the port most active in preserving the natural heritage in its district, but not only that. Its capacity to open these environments to the public, while observing restrictions of access for reasons of safety and security, is also a factor in the selection of the ESPO Award winner.

For more than five years, Dunkerque-Port has implemented a comprehensive strategy for the protection of its natural heritage, through its Natural Heritage Master Plan (SDPN). This tool, created in collaboration with many local partners such as Dunkirk Urban Community, has been deployed to ensure the conservation and management of biodiversity. The work carried out in the framework of the Master Plan is already being put into practice in the field, as attested by the development of the eco-landscape corridor of the St Georges line between the towns of Bourbourg and Gravelines, and the salt basins in the Mardyck district. These achievements, as well as the Port's actions to promote their use by the pubic (visits, nature projects, talks in schools, and so on), have encouraged the ESPO jury to shortlist Dunkerque-Port for the 2016 Award.

The winner of the 8th ESPO Award will be announced on 9 November 2016 during the annual ceremony in Brussels, which a delegation from the Port will attend. Dunkerque-Port is competing against four other European ports, including a French one: Bremen, Carthagena, Riga, and Grand Port Maritime de la Guadeloupe.

Created in 1993, the European Sea Ports Organization is an association bringing European sea ports together for the sustainable development of port activities. The main role of the ESPO is to defend the interests of EU ports within Community institutions. The organisation, based in Brussels, was responsible for drawing up the first Code of "good" environmental practice in 1994 and the setup of the EcoPorts initiative a few years later.

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