Marine Planning in the UK: A UK Marine Bill

Susie Braham from the Scottish Executive’s Marine Management Division gave an update on marine planning in the UK on behalf of the Department for Environment and Rural Development (Defra) Marine and Coastal Policy Department

Please click here for the full presentation or read on for a summary of the talk.

Susie began by explaining that a representative from Defra was regretfully unable to attend the conference in person due to the fact that all Defra marine policy resource had been diverted towards the publication of a White Paper currently being produced to proceed further work to prepare for the UK Marine Bill.  Defra had instead requested that the Scottish Executive present an update on the UK situation on their behalf.

She then went on to explain that it has become clear that the complex framework of domestic and international legislation used to manage the UK’s seas can make effective decision making difficult.  There is increasing demand on marine space, and as a result, conflicts can arise between competing uses.

Activities map of the Irish Sea - even when
just looking at what happens in the marine
area, the picture is extremely complicated

Protection of marine resources for the future is at the heart of Defra’s marine policy. Whilst there are effective rules in place to enable the consideration of impacts of individual activities on marine resources, it can be difficult to judge the effects that lots of activities will have over time.

The only way to ensure maximum sustainable benefits from our marine resources, whilst ensuring appropriate protection of those resources, is to look at the whole marine ecosystem and how everything within it is linked and will change into the future. This is why the 2002 Marine Stewardship Report ‘Safeguarding our Seas’ put an ecosystem approach at the heart of marine strategy.

The UK Government, Scotland and the other Administrations agreed the Marine Stewardship Report together.  It stated their vision for 'clean, healthy, safe productive and biologically diverse oceans and seas' and that they should explore the role of marine planning as a way of realising this vision on both spatial and temporal scales.  The Government and Devolved Administrations and are now working together to put it into practice in a UK Bill (with separate arrangements in Scotland’s territorial waters).

Marine planning is a relatively new concept - most international experience is in its infancy. In many cases, plans focus specifically on environmental or social goals.

The UK is among the first of several European Union Member States to look at implementing a comprehensive system of marine planning that incorporates all marine activities.

The presentation then went on to describe how the UK Government is developing proposals for a Marine Bill, and how it had recently (March-June 2006) consulted on broad proposals. A key cross-cutting element of the Bill will be proposals for a system of marine planning. This will be a mechanism for strategically managing the resources and activities in UK waters, balancing conservation, energy and resource needs.

There was almost unanimous support for the Marine Bill consultation document proposals for a system of marine planning. The majority of respondents thought that a marine planning system that was as influential over decision makers as possible was the most appropriate way forward. They were keen that the different Administrations within the UK should work effectively together to take forward a sensible approach.

The structure that was laid out in the consultation document, and which is now being implemented, is:

Firstly, the production of a policy statement, which will be jointly agreed by all of the UK Administrations. This will expand on the vision for the marine environment, and pull together the many EU obligations (including those coming from emerging EU activities), and bring them together with domestic priorities.

Plans will then be produced in different areas, which will implement the policy statement in specific locations, and look in more detail at the resources and activities in the given area.
These plans will then provide a strong steer to decision making.

The Marine Bill, which was central to the UK Government’s manifesto commitment to take forward new marine legislation, will have five key areas.

A UK Marine Bill will  aim to achieve:

• A new system of marine planning
• Improving licensing for marine developments
• New mechanisms for nature conservation
• Updated fisheries management and enforcement
• New marine management organisation

Management of the UK’s waters is incredibly complex, with responsibility for different activities devolved to each of the Administrations in different ways.  A large number of different industries and activities operate within the marine area, and are regulated by a patchwork of legislation and controls. There is no strategic, forward-looking framework for managing the marine area as a whole. Marine planning will take a wider view of the way in which marine activities interact, the conflicts between them, and their cumulative impacts. It will guide the development of an area, and provide a basis for clear, transparent and consistent decision making on licence applications.

The key early focus of work on marine planning has therefore been to work out together how a planning system might be taken forward in a sensible way, to allow Defra to continue to manage activities in the way as currently done, but working effectively to address marine ecosystems.

A planning system will enable Defra to;

• co-ordinate and set clear policies and objectives that will help to integrate economic, social, cultural and environmental needs in the marine area;

• enable us to ensure these policies and objectives provide a context within which to consider and plan the future development of marine activities or emerging technologies;

• ensure that government policy is able to provide better guidance to decision makers and users, and that we can make proactive decisions and implement them through decisions;

• have a better understanding of the cumulative effects of different types of activities, both on the ecosystem and each other;

It will create a more efficient use of the available marine space, to strike a better, more considered balance between inevitably competing pressures and to consider the co-location of compatible activities in certain areas for mutual benefit.

In December 2004, Defra commissioned a Marine Spatial Planning Pilot project in the Irish Sea, to research planning options and the practicalities for developing, implementing and managing marine plans in UK coastal and offshore waters. The project ran for a year and involved extensive stakeholder engagement from within and outside Government. The final report was published in February 2006.

We can see from the ‘Activities map of the Irish Sea’ produced by the pilot that even when just looking at what happens in the marine area, the picture is extremely complicated.

What next?

Susie brought the presentation to a close by describing the steps ahead.  Defra plan to produce a White Paper in March 2007, which will state clearly the policy direction they are taking, before they move on to legislation at a later stage.  Defra recognise that stakeholders overwhelmingly believe this legislation is important, and are striving to ensure that information is therefore made available as early as possible, so that everyone can see the scope and shape of the proposals.

Anyone is welcome to contact Defra or the Scottish Executive for further information on any part of the Marine Bill, or marine planning specifically.

Defra
MarineLegislationDivision@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Karen.morgan@defra.gsi.gov.uk
www.defra.gov.uk

Scottish Executive
Susanna.Braham@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
www.scotland.gov.uk

Links to further information:

Marine Bill
www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/marinebill/index.htm

Irish Sea Marine Spatial Planning Pilot Project
www.abpmer.net/mspp/

A message to the Clyde Forum from Defra ...

We regret that no-one from Defra is able to attend this event. In particular we are keen to learn about the progress that has been made with the SSMEI pilots and with thinking on marine planning in Scotland generally. Unfortunately it is unavoidable that we could not be present. At the moment all of our resource in this area has been diverted towards the publication of a White Paper, to proceed further work to prepare for the Marine Bill.  This will require a large amount of work in the immediate future.

White Paper publication

Policy development for the Marine Bill has progressed since our last consultation in March of this year. In order to secure progress on a Marine Bill we think it is important to publish details of policy in the public domain as soon as possible. We can do this using a White Paper in a way that is difficult with the preparation that is needed for a draft Bill. We are therefore aiming to publish a White Paper as soon as possible, and believe that we need to do this before the elections in both Scotland and Wales, given the UK wide dimension of some of the important elements of the policy.

Note from the editor:  At the time of writing the White Paper was due to be released on 15th March 2007.

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