An Ocean of Opportunity:

An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Maritime Spatial Planning: Achieving

Common Principles in the EU

Hermien Busschbach

European Commission – Directorate-General for Maritime

Affairs and Fisheries

Working group on IMP in the Mediterranean, 1

December 15th 2009

 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Content of presentation:

1. Maritime Spatial planning (MSP): general overview

 What is it?
 What has EC done so far?
2. MSP challenges in the Mediterranean
3. Some initiatives on coastal and marine planning in
the Mediterranean
4. EU actions on MSP in the Mediterranean and
future policy steps in EU.
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

What is Maritime Spatial Planning?

• MSP is a process
• Builds on the ecosystem
approach
• Forward looking
• The process should be open and
transparent involving all
stakeholders
• It covers all maritime sectors –
integrated approach

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Advantages of Maritime Spatial Planning

• Essential for sustainable

development of maritime
regions
• A tool for promoting rational
use of the sea and improved
decision-making
• Important for mitigation and
adaptation to climate change
• Provides a stable planning
framework for maritime
investments
• Arbitration between competing
human activities 4
 An Ocean of Opportunity:
COMPETING CLAIMS Maritime Policy
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU
Land use
Tourism
Oil &Gas
Mariculture
Coastal
Defence
Ports &
Navigation
Military
Activities
Culture
Conservation
Dredging &
Disposal
Submarine Fishing Renewable Marine Mineral 5

Cables Energy Recreation Extraction

 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

What has been done so far?

EU Policy process: The Roadmap on MSP

• Roadmap Communication adopted on 25th

November 2008
• Identifies 10 key principles for MSP in the EU
• Stimulate a wide debate on development of
a common approach to MSP in Europe (4
workshops to discuss the key principles of
the Roadmap)
• Important delivery of the Integrated EU
Maritime Policy

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

The 10 key-principles on MSP

Overarching principle: ecosystem approach
• Using MSP according to area and type of activity
• Defining objectives to guide MSP
• Developing MSP in a transparent manner
• Stakeholder participation
• Coordination within Member States – simplifying
decision processes
• Ensuring the legal effect of national MSP
• Cross-border cooperation and consultation
• Incorporating monitoring and evaluation in the
planning process
• Achieving coherence between terrestrial and
maritime spatial planning 7

• Strong data and knowledge base

 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

More information on the messages from

the workshop on the key –principles on
the DG Mare Website.
http;//ec.europa.eu//maritimeaffairs/spati
al_planning

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

MSP challenges in the Mediterranean (1/2)

The implementation of MSP in the Mediterranean in

comparison with other sea basins poses different
challenges:
 Large part is made up of High Seas, this means different
legal regimes and complicates cross-border cooperation.
 Looking for a common approach: more than 20 coastal
States with uneven economic interests and administrative
capacitates.
 New emerging activities and uses (sustainable energy)
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

MSP challenges in the Mediterranean (2/2)

 Environmental added value of the MED. MSP is a tool for

achieving economic sustainable development while
preserving the marine environment (e.g. tourism,
recreational boating, etc.) and link with MSFD
 Coastal zone planning is widely developed by
Mediterranean regions. High level of commitment on the
implementation of ICZM in the Mediterranean (ICZM
protocol to Barcelona convention). Achieving coherence
between terrestrial and maritime spatial planning

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Some initiatives on coastal and marine planning

in the Mediterranean

• ISPRA work shop and the example of Pelagos Sanctuary

to MSP
• INTERREG IIIB Plan Coast (2006-2008) in the Adriatic
Sea
• Other examples at national or sub-regional scale: Coastal
Zone Planning in the territory of the Primorsko-Goranska
county (Croatia), Strategic Study of the Spanish coast for
off shore energy, or the forthcoming plan for the coast
and islands regions in Greece, etc.

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

ISPRA workshop; example of the relevance of

the Pelagos Sanctuary to MSP (1)

Conservation area for Sea mammals for the

coasts of France, Italy and Monaco
• Using MSP to area and type of activity
 Space management is of fundamental importance:
area of high environmental value and used by fishing,
military, traffic.

• Defining objectives to guide MSP

 Current plan only for environmental protection. A
wider management framework for other (stronger)
activities, would provide better protection
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

ISPRA workshop; example of the relevance of

the Pelagos Sanctuary to MSP (2)
• Ensuring legal effect of MSP
 Legally binding framework possible in territorial
waters. As EEZ’s are not established it will be an
ABNJ, importance of Barcelona Convention Protocol on
MPA’s.
• Achieving coherence between terrestrial and
MSP
 Need for coordination between terrestrial and MSP,
because land-based activities affect the quality of
Pelagos, such as agriculture, industry, coastal
construction.
At the moment a management body with
sufficient power is lacking. MSP might help.
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

INTERREG III B PlanCoast (duration April 2006 –

April 2008)
• PlanCoast was an INTERREG IIIB NP CADSES
Project with the aim to develop the tools and
capacities for an effective integrated planning in
coastal zones and maritime areas in the Baltic,
Adriatic and Black Sea regions.
• PlanCoast had 16 partners representing the spatial
planning departments or responsible regional
authorities from Albania, Bosnia–Herzegovina,
Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Italy, Montenegro,
Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Ukraine
• Introduced the completely new spatial planning
instrument
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

MSP actions in the PlanCoast Project

• Compilation of possible tools and

instruments in a Handbook on
Integrated Maritime Spatial Planning
• Pilot projects, e.g. in Adriatic Sea in
order to produce new integrated spatial
plans.
• Technical assisted by Geographic
Information System (GIS), for mapping
and analysing uses and conflicts
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

EU actions on MSP in the Mediterranean

•To carry out the Study

”Exploring the potential of
MSP in the Mediterranean
Sea”: October 2009-
October 2010

• Next step: Launching a

test project in the
Mediterranean,
encouraging concrete
cross-border practices
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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Study “Exploring the Potential of MSP in the

Mediterranean Sea”

• Main goals to be achieved:

 Identify potential areas in the Mediterranean

Sea for the application of MSP
 Analyse obstacles to application of MSP
 Suggest possible response for concrete
application of MSP in specific sub-regions or
sea areas

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

• Expected outcomes:

 Support the ongoing debate on Maritime Spatial Planning

launched by the EC Roadmap and taken forward by the
workshops organized by the EC during 2009

 Form the basis for the launch of a test project in the

Mediterranean, encouraging concrete cross-border practices
as announced in the Commission’s Communication ‘Towards
an Integrated Maritime Policy for better governance in the
Mediterranean’

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

EU Policy process: other general studies on MSP

• Legal aspects of MSP –

concluded (is available on the
Commission website)
• Economic benefits of MSP –
ongoing

• Two preparatory actions are

foreseen for the Baltic and
the North Sea / North East
Atlantic

• Further studies under

consideration

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 An Ocean of Opportunity:
An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU

Policy process: Next steps

• Progress report from the Commission to the

Council and the European Parliament

• Timing: Foreseen for 1st quarter 2010

• Will build on the debate in the workshops, the

experience gained through the preparatory actions
and the results of the studies conducted so far

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Thank you for your attention!

http://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/spatial_planning_en.html