The Leybucht is the second largest bay in

East Frisia East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...

in northwest Germany after the

Dollart The Dollart (German name) or Dollard (Dutch name) is a bay in the Wadden Sea between the northern Netherlands and Germany, on the west side of the estuary of the Ems river. Most of it dries at low tide. Many water birds feed there. Gaining ...

. The

Jade Bight The Jade Bight (or ''Jade Bay''; german: Jadebusen) is a bight or bay on the North Sea coast of Germany. It was formerly known simply as ''Jade'' or ''Jahde''. Because of the very low input of freshwater, it is classified as a bay rather than an ...

is larger than both, but belongs historically to

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...

Location

The Leybucht lies in western East Frisia between the port of

Greetsiel Greetsiel is a small port on the bight of Leybucht in western East Frisia, Germany that was first documented in letters from the year 1388. Since 1972, Greetsiel has been part of the municipality of Krummhörn, which has its administrative seat in ...

and Norddeich, about 18 kilometres north of

Emden Emden () is an independent city and seaport in Lower Saxony in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia and, in 2011, had a total population of 51,528. History The exact founding date of E ...

and 25 kilometres west of the county town of

Aurich Aurich (; East Frisian Low Saxon: ''Auerk'', West Frisian: ''Auwerk'', stq, Aurk) is a town in the East Frisian region of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Aurich and is the second largest City in East Frisia, both i ...

. It has an area of about 19 km².

History

The Leybucht was formed after the first reliably recorded

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...

along the Dutch coast on 26 December 838. About 2,500 people died in the area of the coast affected by this natural disaster. Following the storm surges of 1374 and 1376 the bay attained its maximum extent with an area of 129 km² and stretched from

in the west to

Marienhafe Marienhafe is a municipality in the district of Aurich, in Lower Saxony, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, a ...

in the east and from the edge of the town of

Norden Norden is a Scandinavian and German word, directly translated as "the North". It may refer to: Places England * Norden, Basingstoke, a ward of Basingstoke and Deane * Norden, Dorset, a hamlet near Corfe Castle * Norden, Greater Manchester, a vi ...

as far as Canhusen (in the municipality of

Hinte Hinte is a village and a municipality in the district of Aurich, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 20 km south of Norden Norden is a Scandinavian and German word, directly translated as "the North". It may refer to: Pl ...

) in the south. In the following centuries, more and more dykes were built to create

polders A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed # Flood plains s ...

, so that by 1950 the bay had been reduced to its present size. The last land reclamation took place in 1947–1950 with the construction of the Störtebeker dyke, which enclosed the Leybucht Polder and the coast line was straightened. In the following years there were plans to reclaim the entire bay in order to shorten the line of dykes significantly and to improve coastal protection. This measure was eventually rejected on

nature conservation Nature conservation is the moral philosophy and conservation movement focused on protecting species from extinction, maintaining and restoring habitats, enhancing ecosystem services, and protecting biological diversity. A range of values unde ...

grounds.. Only a few, small

coastal defence Coastal management is defence against flooding and erosion, and techniques that stop erosion to claim lands. Protection against rising sea levels in the 21st century is crucial, as sea level rise accelerates due to climate change. Changes in s ...

measures were implemented (e. g. the reclamation of the Leyhörn in 1991). To reinforce the dyke system the first preparations began in 1985 to build the New Störtebeker Dyke (''Neue Störtebekerdeichesitungen'') which was completed in 2000, and which was laid out in front of the old dyke, the

salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominated ...

es in front of it being largely saved.

Present situation

The Leybucht lies in the

Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park The Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park (german: Nationalpark Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer) was established in 1986 and embraces the East Frisian Islands, mudflats and salt marshes between the Bay of Dollart on the border with the Netherlands ...

(''Nationalpark Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer'') and belongs to Zone I. It enjoys special protection, not least because of the fauna and flora of its salt marshes. The Leybucht Polder was settled in the 1950s and is a village in the borough of

. The most important tourist resort on the Leybucht is the 'Siel'' village of

External links

Website of the Nationalpark Haus in Greetsiel

The Leybucht - Changes due to coastal protection measures

References

{{Bays of the East Frisian Peninsula Bays of Lower Saxony Geography of East Frisia