North Sea Watch: Transforming Maritime Environmental Data into Policy Action

Despite growing scientific evidence of environmental harm, scrubber usage remains widespread due to economic advantages, while regulation across North Sea countries remains fragmented and inconsistent.

In collaboration with Stichting De Noordzee, a Dutch marine conservation organization, our interdisciplinary team developed North Sea Watch. This digital platform transforms complex maritime environmental data into accessible tools for policymakers and the public. The platform addresses a critical gap: while scientific studies have established the risks of scrubber discharge, there was no unified, user-friendly space linking evidence, regulation, and action.

The platform comprises three integrated components: a homepage that contextualizes the issue through accessible storytelling, an interactive map displaying real-time shipping data and estimated scrubber discharge, along with port-level policy and ship information, and a simulation dashboard that enables users to model regulatory scenarios and assess their environmental and economic impacts.

Evidence-based policy simulation

The platform's Agent-Based Model simulates interactions between ships, ports and national regulations. The model reveals that isolated national bans may unintentionally increase total pollution due to traffic displacement, while coordinated bans offer optimal environmental and economic outcomes.

Through stakeholder interviews with Danish Ministry officials, Port of Amsterdam policy advisors, and environmental organizations, the project captured real-world challenges in policy implementation. "For environmental organizations like Stichting De Noordzee, the platform consolidates previously scattered scrubber discharge data into a unified advocacy tool, enhancing their ability to demonstrate the geographic scope and scale of pollution to key stakeholders across the maritime sector."

Bridging science and policy

The platform serves multiple audiences simultaneously. For port authorities considering scrubber regulations, the simulation tool enables the examination of potential economic and environmental trade-offs before implementation. Policymakers can model regulatory impacts at national scales, while ecological advocates gain access to visual representations of pollution patterns that strengthen their advocacy efforts.

North Sea Watch demonstrates how computational social science can contribute to environmental governance by making complex data accessible to decision-makers while maintaining scientific rigor - offering a model for future interventions addressing cross-jurisdictional environmental challenges.

Since its deployment, the platform has provided stakeholders with visibility into a previously hidden ecological issue, laying the groundwork for more informed and coordinated maritime environmental policy across the North Sea region.