SAMSKAG stands for ‘together for the Skagerrak’ – and there is good reason for the countries surrounding the strait to work together, says the project lead for SAMSKAG II, Professor Mikael van Deurs from DTU Aqua.
The Skagerrak and its adjacent marine areas have rich biological diversity, but current protection and conservation efforts are insufficient to safeguard the ecosystems. There is a need for an integrated marine management approach that combines conservation objectives with fisheries management.
This is the purpose of the SAMSKAG II project, which is now being launched in 2026 and will run for two years. As the number II indicates, the project follows on from SAMSKAG I and the existing Nordic collaboration in which species were mapped.
The team also carried out an interesting literature review, which showed that in the Skagerrak it is more the rule than the exception that organisms are genetically identical within the strait – and therefore distinct from those in the seas surrounding it.
READ about the first SAMSKAG project in the TemaNord report Improving nature management and marine protection in Skagerrak – Knowledge synthesis for conservation planning, ecosystem-based fisheries management, and expanding offshore wind farms.
In SAMSKAG II, researchers from Norway, Sweden and Denmark are taking new steps back in time to establish a historical baseline for the Skagerrak ecosystems. They will develop indicators for ecosystem status and design scenarios for a network of marine protected areas.
“The Skagerrak is under significant pressure from human activity – including fishing, climate change, and nutrient discharge along the coast. And under these conditions, cod is already so stressed that it is on the verge of disappearing,” says Mikael van Deurs, adding:
“This is why collaboration between the Nordic countries surrounding the Skagerrak is crucial for strengthening the region’s unique ecosystem.”
Using History as a Guideline for Nature Conservation and Sustainable Fisheries
DTU Aqua is leading the part of the project that involves gathering data dating back to around 1900. The aim is to develop a comprehensive, cross‑national historical baseline that can provide a more realistic picture of what the region’s ecosystems looked like before fisheries intensified in the second half of the 20th century.
“Today, management often lacks a historical point of reference when setting targets for both restoration and sustainable fisheries. But it is essential to have a baseline in order to know what to aim for in future nature restoration and management,” says Mikael van Deurs.
He refers to the phenomenon known as the shifting baseline syndrome – or change blindness – where each generation unconsciously accepts an increasingly degraded environmental state as the norm.Many species were far more widespread in the past, and researchers now hope to uncover and preserve that knowledge by delving into the historical data in SAMSKAG II.
Indicators That Reveal the State of Biodiversity
Alongside the historical baseline, it is important to understand which species provide insight into the health of life in the Skagerrak. This is where the second major scientific component of SAMSKAG II comes into play: establishing biodiversity indicators for fish and shellfish.
This work is led by SALT, a Nordic consultancy specialising in marine management.
Biodiversity indicators are measurable signs, data or observations in nature that make it possible to track environmental developments over time.
The researchers will select and assess biodiversity indicators according to eight international quality criteria, which include ecological relevance, sensitivity to pressures and usefulness in management. In addition, a literature review will be carried out to identify supplementary candidates such as macroalgae and eelgrass.
The Push of Accessible Knowledge That Paves the Way for Better Management
SAMSKAG II is now setting the course for even closer Nordic cooperation on the marine environment in the Skagerrak and Kattegat.
With new scenarios for a coherent network of marine protected areas and a historical mapping of fish stocks, the project aims to provide the knowledge base that is currently lacking to reverse the decline in some of the region’s most pressured marine areas.
The work aligns directly with both the EU’s nature and marine strategies, as well as the shared Nordic ambition to become the world’s most sustainable region. The project partners emphasise that the ecological connections across national borders make it necessary to rethink management entirely, as nationally confined solutions are no longer sufficient.
With a strong focus on clear communication, the results will be translated into concrete recommendations for decision‑makers and the public in the form of policy briefs and guidelines.
The hope is that SAMSKAG II can become the push of accessible knowledge that paves the way for better management, more targeted restoration and a far more resilient biodiversity in Nordic waters, with the Skagerrak at the centre.
Project Activities in 2026
The first meeting between the Nordic project partners in SAMSKAG II will take place in Copenhagen on 9–10 April.
The SAMSKAG project has also resulted in funding to use the large, well‑equipped Swedish research vessel RV Svea for six days in July. During this period, the researchers will embark on a joint, interdisciplinary expedition to the Skagerrak and Kattegat to collect video documentation from, among other things, vulnerable habitats at depths of 100–200 metres.
They will also visit a location described in historical documents as hosting a horse mussel reef at roughly 70–100 metres depth.
In the autumn, the project will follow up on the start of the year with a conference, which will also provide an opportunity to further strengthen cooperation on a robust, knowledge‑based and sustainable management of the Skagerrak.