Marine protected areas in Belgium
Belgium: Marine protected areas was 38.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Marine protected areas in Belgium, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring. Measured in % of territorial waters.
Analysis
Belgium recorded 38.3% for marine protected areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, marine protected areas in Belgium peaked at 38.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 36.6%, in 2014.
Belgium ranks 13th of 174 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Marine protected areas in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % of territorial waters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 36.7% | — |
| 2014 | 36.6% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 36.6% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 36.7% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 36.6% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 36.7% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 36.7% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 36.7% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 38.1% | +3.8% |
| 2022 | 38.1% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 38.1% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 38.3% | +0.5% |
| 2025 | 38.3% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 36.7% | 36.6% | 36.7% | 7 |
| 2020s | 37.9% | 36.7% | 38.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
- 10 Germany 45.3% compare
- 11 Chile 41.2% compare
- 12 Colombia 41.1% compare
- 14 Netherlands 33.5% compare
- 15 Seychelles 32.6% compare
- 16 Northern Mariana Islands 32.4% compare
More climate change data for Belgium
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 8,360 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,763 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 6,597 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 6.65 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 235.6 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,004 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 993.72 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 10.01 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 3.75 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.3575 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is marine protected areas in Belgium?
- Marine protected areas in Belgium was 38.3% in 2025, according to Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring.
- What is the highest marine protected areas recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 38.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest marine protected areas recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 36.6% in 2014.
- How does Belgium rank for marine protected areas?
- Belgium ranks 13th out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
- Is marine protected areas rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet: The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and World Database on Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (WD-OECM), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring, published as part of Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Marine protected areas are areas of intertidal or subtidal terrain--and overlying water and associated flora and fauna and historical and cultural features--that have been reserved by law or other effective means to protect part or all of the enclosed environment.