Achieving Good Quality of Coastal Waters: The Role of Policy Coherence across the Land–Sea Interface

Coastal ecosystems are affected by pressures from both land and sea. Ensuring good ecosystem conditions therefore requires ecosystem-based management (EBM) that addresses pressures at their source, regardless of where they originate. The EU Water Framework Directive and Marine Strategy Framework Directive both employ EBM approaches. Yet despite their complementary aims, they fall short of enabling holistic source-to-sea management. Incoherences in scope, scale, and legal force hinder achieving their environmental objectives, while sectoral economic policies often prevail. Case studies from Norway, Finland, and France illustrate varied national responses to these design challenges in EU law. Despite their efforts, none of the cases achieved good coastal water quality. Revisions of EU legislation and policy are needed. Coherence in objectives and measures should be strengthened across the Directives, enabling clearer and better coordinated roles; procedural alignment should reduce duplication and enhance synergies; and stronger legal and financial steering is needed to influence sectoral policies.