ices conference poster final
TRANSCRIPT
Marine Spatial Planning in Action: Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters case studyShona Turnbull1, Tracy McCollin2 and James Green3
1. INTRODUCTION• The Marine (Scotland) Act 2010
makes provision for statutory marine planning in Scotland’s seas.
• Regional marine spatial planning is being piloted in the Pentland Firth & Orkney Waters area (Figure 1).
• This non statutory process will be used to inform the statutory Regional Marine Plans.
What works well? Scottish Government and local
government partnership. Small, focussed working group. Good mix of expertise. Clear planning process stages and
timetable of outputs.
Difficulties and challenges Access to data across organisations. Tight deadlines can limit the extent of
public and stakeholder engagement. Balancing national and local priorities
and local expectations.
2. OPERATIONAL PROCESSES• A small working group (Figure 2) was
set up in March 2012 and consists of a range of expertise i.e. marine scientist, planner and ecologist.
• The group has developed the overall planning process, consultation documents and associated community engagement.
• The documents follow a similar process to terrestrial Local Development Plans production, with clear, auditable steps and multiple opportunities for stakeholder and wider public engagement.
3. RESEARCH AND CONSULTATION• Research to inform the process is being
undertaken on various sectors e.g. marine renewables, shipping, fishing and tourism, to analyse potential conflicts and benefits.
• Data and relevant information are not always available when required owing to projects being delivered to different timelines.
• Tight timelines can limit the time available for external input to the process.
• Public engagement is ongoing to ensure local knowledge is captured throughout the process and all business sectors have the opportunity to help shape the marine spatial plan through non statutory and statutory consultation.
• It is a challenge to ensure the correct people are consulted at the correct time and expectations are managed.
Marine spatial planning is as much about managing people as managing the marine environment.
ConclusionsUnderpin marine plans with robust knowledge.
Establish a clear plan making process and opportunities for engagement, maintaining regular communication with stakeholders throughout.
Ensure appropriate planning, scientific and technical expertise are available.
10 point Summary
4. NEXT STEPS• Prepare Consultation Report and
final Environmental Report to capture stakeholder input.
• Prepare draft pilot Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Spatial Plan for consultation in early 2014.
• Review the process of developing the pilot marine spatial plan.
Contact:
ICES CM 2013 I:36
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