The Common Wadden Sea Secretariat (CWSS) of the Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea (TWSC) of Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands seeks a qualified contractors/ consultants to prepare the German component of the Joint Strategic Environmental Assessment of cumulative impacts on the trilateral Wadden Sea World Heritage Site (SEA-DE). This includes the identification of possible cumulative impacts of programmes, plans and projects in the German Wadden Sea part of the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site.
The selected contractors/ consultants should be able to demonstrate: Proven knowledge of environmental and planning law relevant to the German coastal area, experience in conducting strategic environmental or impact assessments, ecological expertise on the German Wadden Sea and the North Sea. Desirable: familiarity with German administrative structures and cross border cooperation.
A multidisciplinary, independent team with a solid background in conducting strategic environmental assessments according to the EU legislation will be essential. Selected consultancies may also participate in developing the Joint Strategic Environmental Assessment. 1. Background. The transboundary UNESCO Wadden Sea World Heritage is the world's largest contiguous mudflat ecosystem, characterised by natural dynamic processes. It stretches along the southern North Sea coast from Den Helder in the Netherlands through Germany to Esbjerg in Denmark. The states of the Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation - the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark - have committed themselves and are jointly responsible for doing everything in their power to preserve the Out-standing Universal Value (OUV) of this World Heritage Site.
At its 45th session in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (10 to 25 September 2023), the UNESCO World Heritage Committee expressed its concern about various human activities within, near or below the transboundary Wadden Sea World Heritage site and requested the Wadden Sea states to carry out and submit a Joint Strategic Environmental Assessment (Joint SEA) to assess the cumulative impacts of existing and planned developments and projects within and around the area (see Decision 45 COM 7B.23).
This task is being coordinated by the Wadden Sea States under the leadership of the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, in which - based on a common study framework - three national components are being developed, the contents of which will then be integrated at the trilateral level and combined in a joint report (see Annex 1 Draft Scoping Report Joint SEA, Figure 1, p. 7). To this end, common objectives for the study, a study framework, guidelines for the procedure and the procedural sequence were agreed upon and presented in the Draft Scoping Report Joint SEA (see Annex 1). This is to be observed as the framework for the development of the German component (see Annex 1). The draft is currently undergoing technical review by independent experts and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. These reviews may lead to changes in the Draft Scoping Report Joint SEA. In addition, technical coordination steps, e. g. joint workshops and coordination rounds, are planned during the parallel work processes for the national components.
The Joint SEA is based on the European regulations on environmental assessments (SEA, EIA) implemented in all three countries. However, unlike established environmental assessments, a large number of projects that are subject to planning and approval procedures are to be considered cumulatively by it. Selected anthropogenic uses and changes that are not subject to planning and approval procedures are also to be considered in cumulation. In addition, the unique universal value of the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site ("Outstanding Universal Value", OUV) is at the centre of consideration.
It is planned to outsource the preparation of the Joint SEA as well as the SEA-DE to external contractors/ consultants. Good communication between the client and contractor of the Joint SEA and the SEA-DE, as well as with the technical contacts at national level and accompanying expert groups at trilateral level, is important for the success of the project and must therefore be ensured at all times.
Scope of Work and Key Tasks
The service to be provided consists of preparing the German component of the Joint Strategic Environmental Assessment of cumulative impacts on the trilateral Wadden Sea World Heritage Site (SEA-DE).
The following tasks are to be implemented for this purpose:
- Compilation of relevant plans, programmes and projects (PPP) in the German part of the site that need to be considered in terms of their possible cumulative effects on the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site (screening). PPPs that have an impact on the World Heritage Site from outside should also be considered. The preliminary list of programmes, plans and projects to be considered (see Annex 2) serves as a guideline;
- Analysis of the planning objects of the PPPs, classification and/or typification of the planning objects and compilation of relevant projects. The relevant projects should be spatially located and presented as GIS information;
- Presentation of the current environmental status in the German part of the site with a particular focus on the key values of the OUV (see Figure 2 in Annex 1) based on available data and reports (including the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Programme, Quality Status Reports). The approach is to be coordinated in more detail on a trilateral basis in the course of the work process. The data on the environmental status is to be processed and made available in a GIS project;
- Description of the environmental status in the German part of the site at the time of inscription (2009) and presentation of significant changes and development trends by comparison with the current status on the basis of available data and reports, including the 2008 World Heritage nomination dossier;
- Recording and assessment of possible environmental impacts of the relevant projects on the basis of available data and studies, in particular the PPP's environmental reports, with a special focus on cumulative impacts on the OUV. A suitable method is to be developed for this purpose and coordinated with the SEA-DE working group;
- Forecast of possible environmental impacts for three scenarios presented in the Draft Scoping Report Joint SEA (Annex 1) for the German part of the site and their spatial overview in a GIS. The scenarios may be amended in the course of further work and coordination.

Deliverables
The following products are to be delivered/handed over for the provision of services:
- Environmental report on cumulative impacts on the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site (SEA-DE) in English and German. The report should be approximately 60 pages long, illustrations, maps and other appendices not counted in. The report should at least include a description of the study area, an assessment of the environmental status and future scenarios for 2050 in GIS-based cartographic representations, visualised on an appropriate scale. The environmental report and the underlying database should be structured in such a way that the results and partial products from the work steps can be successively handed over to the Joint SEA contractor for further use in the course of the work process. The timetable for this will be agreed at the beginning of the work process.
- GIS project including metadata. The GIS project should be structured and documented in such a way that subsequent further processing and external use of content, e. g. on online information platforms, is possible.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE WORK PROCESS
- Consideration of the principles of the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context (UNESCO 2022), whereby the explicit inclusion of OUV must be further improved;
- Close exchange with the SEA-DE working group, including regular meetings on the current status of work (online and in person);
- Participation in trilateral workshops, presentation of the concept and work status of the SEA-DE and, in return, consideration and incorporation of workshop results into the SEA-DE;
- Ensuring communication with the Joint SEA contractor to coordinate procedures in order to prepare for the integration of SEA-DE into the Joint SEA in the best possible way;
- Final technical acceptance of the work by the SEA-DE working group.

REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTRACTORS
Contractors are requested to provide suitable references on the following topics:
- Knowledge of the legal basis of environmental and planning law applicable to the German coastal area (evidence through training and experience of employees and/or reference pro-jects);
- Experience in preparing strategic environmental assessments or environmental impact assessments (evidence in the form of references to impact studies carried out);
- Ecological expertise on the German Wadden Sea and the North Sea (evidence through training and experience of employees and references);
- As the work is to be carried out across federal states and countries, knowledge of the administrative structures in Germany and in the field of cross-border cooperation is desirable.

The working language of the Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation is English, which applies to exchanges at the trilateral level (including meetings, possible working documents and deliveries). The environmental report on the SEA-DE is to be prepared in German and English.

Budget
Tenders should provide a detailed description of the proposed approach as well as a budget proposal that best reflects the requested set of deliverables.
Proponents are advised that this assignment is estimated at 100.000EUR, including VAT, covering the project"s full list of tasks and timeline. If the consultancy is unable to fulfil all the deliverables outlined in this call for tender within the estimated budget, CWSS encourages submission of a proposal within the budget range, clearly indicating which key deliverables can be fulfilled.
Tender fees should be fully inclusive of staff time, external services, overheads, materials, design of reports and potential travel costs for meetings. VAT, if applicable and non-recoverable, should be clearly indicated separately.
A first payment of 50% is done at the signing of the contract and a second rate of 25% upon approval of the draft report. The remaining 25% is paid upon approval of the final Environmental report and GIS data.