Natuurmonumenten wants to talk more often and better with the residents of Schiermonnikoog. The site manager takes issue with the poor way of communicating with the local population.
The immediate reason is the affair with the site signs. These were renovated and moved in the summer without consultation. Two Islander brothers removed at least 28 yellow signs in the night of August 26 to 27 in protest and were fined by the police.
“There were signs here and there on the island, it was an unclear situation. We then decided to clean up all the old plates. On balance, no more have been replaced, but the new entrance signs did appear in other places and have a more striking color scheme,” says spokesperson Fred Prak of Natuurmonumenten. “The islanders felt overwhelmed. We should have made this known, communication deserves improvement.”
Last week, Natuurmonumenten met in various groups with a total of 38 islanders spoken about the resentment there is against the site manager. According to spokesperson Prak, these were constructive, but also confrontational conversations. A working group is being formed to discuss how and when the stolen site signs will be replaced. “We are dealing with national regulations and with visitors who are less familiar with the nature on the island and the rules, but something needs to be done about the number of signs.”
‘Creeping process’
The uncommunicated installation of new site signs was the final straw for many Schiermonnikogers in their dealings with Natuurmonumenten. There has been dissatisfaction about this for some time on the Wadden Island. Schiermonnikogers Cor Visser and Ardie Noorman see the island less and less as their national park and Natuurmonumenten less and less as their manager, they wrote a few weeks ago in the Village messenger . ‘A creeping process that has been going on for several years now’.
“We are taking matters into our own hands,” says Prak. “We talk more often with the islanders about what we do, what choices we make and what dilemmas we face. We are going to share that better and we are going to listen better to what the islanders think, although this of course has to be done on both sides.”
Noorman says he is satisfied with the intensive discussions that Natuurmonumenten has had. “It looks like there is some cold in the air,” he said via email. “I have a hesitant feeling that we are moving in the right direction.”