Hotspots in peril: Misalignment of conservation efforts and ecological values in a shallow coastal sea

Abstract Misalignment between the location of marine protected areas (MPAs) and ecologically valuable areas, here defined as low conservation conformity, may arise due to conflicting socioeconomic and ecological demands, diminishing MPA effectiveness. Such conflicts are especially found in coastal areas with high human population density and high natural productivity. Here, we aim to provide a framework to quantitatively and qualitatively assess conservation conformity using multiple indicators to identify hotspots of ecological quality. We use the subtidal Dutch Wadden Sea as a case study due to its unique natural, cultural, and economic values and the availability of high‐resolution spatial data. We focus on macrozoobenthic communities (larger animals living in and on the seafloor), a vital group experiencing significant ecological degradation due to a long history of human activity. A complex set of restrictions has been implemented to prevent further macrozoobenthos degradation and to stimulate recovery. We first spatially overlay and translate the different protection measures to international standards. We then determine hotspots of ecological quality based on nationally and internationally used indicators of biodiversity and seafloor status and map their overlap with protected areas. We found that in 2024, 37% of the 134,466 ha subtidal Dutch Wadden Sea has some level of protection. However, due to the poor spatial overlap of implemented measures, the IUCN‐based guidelines would classify only 10% as an MPA, while only 2% of the subtidal is truly free of human bottom‐disturbing activities. Of this total subtidal area, 19% was classified as an ecological hotspot based on multiple indicators. However, the protection measures in place overlapped very poorly with these ecological hotspots. Overall, only in 2% of the total subtidal area, IUCN‐classified MPAs overlapped with locations identified as ecological hotspots for at least six indicators, indicating poor overlap of MPAs with ecological hotspots. Because the whole Wadden Sea is subject to several international protection schemes (e.g. Natura 2000, OSPAR convention, Ramsar Convention, and UNESCO World Heritage), these results call for substantial adjustment of the current conservation layout. We thus emphasise the importance of quantitatively evaluating potential misalignment between protected areas and ecologically valuable areas in coastal zones. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.