Human Habitats ^{+ Dead Zones - WFFR Lokaal}

Wildlife Film Festival Rotterdam (WFFR) annually shows the most beautiful and impactful films about nature from home and abroad. With the special program WFFR Lokaal, a selection of films is shown at 21 special locations, spread throughout Rotterdam. In addition, extra activities are organized around the film at many of our local locations. In this way, we bring nature closer to everyone!

Europe’s cities and towns attract not only tourists, but also a surprising amount of wildlife. Paris may be known as one of the world’s most ‘rat-infested’ cities, but there is a growing awareness that these rodents may be allies rather than enemies. In Spain, enormous white storks nest on church roofs. Dice snakes catch fish in man-made waterfalls, while ibexes effortlessly scale the steep walls of a dam. And in Portugal, hungry bats feast on beetles in a majestic palace library…

In addition, the short Dead Zones will also be shown. 'Dead Zones' is a documentary about oxygen-poor zones in the ocean and water quality in the Netherlands, made on the occasion of the eponymous art and research project by visual artist Suzette Bousema.

Fertilizers from agriculture and other waste streams cause algal blooms in coastal waters. When they decompose, bacteria use all the oxygen, making life impossible. In the Baltic Sea, such a zone covers 60,000 square meters; off the coast of the US, a dead zone the size of half the Netherlands develops every year. Dead zones can also be found in the Netherlands, such as in the Grevelingenmeer.

Over the past 50 years, the number of dead zones worldwide has increased tenfold, largely due to human intervention and the use of artificial fertilizers.