Marine Planning in Scotland

Linda RosboroughDirector – Marine Scotland

MARINE SCOTLAND

Directorate of Scottish Government:

• Marine policy (fisheries, aquaculture, renewable energy, nature

conservation, marine planning, MSFD)• Marine Licensing

• Marine Scotland Science

• Marine Scotland Compliance

The Scottish Marine Planning Area

Marine planning

• Promote sustainable use of marine resources and economic development

• Manage conflict in the marine environment and inform decision making

• Contribute to the delivery of Good Environmental Status

Drivers & Legislation

• Marine plans will inform decision-making relating to a plan area. The MPS does this in absence of a plan. • Development of marine plan for offshore area delegated to Scottish Ministers, but UK Secretary of State for DEFRA must agree before publication & adoption.

Legislative Planning for Scotland

Legislative requirements

• The condition of the area – summary of significant pressures and human impacts

• Policies for sustainable development

• Economic, social, marine ecosystem and climate change objectives

• Policies on MPAs and other relevant nature conservation designated sites

• Conformity with Marine Policy Statement

• Public participation; consultation; Parliament; Ministerial adoption

• Monitoring

Scottish Pressures

E-publication now available at:

www.scotland.gov.uk/marineatlas

National Marine Plan

Current position

What condition are our seas in now?

Vision for our seasclean, healthy, safe, productive, biologically diverse

Marine planning

How can marine planning help achieve our vision?

How do we get there?

GES and HLMOs

Sectoral objectives

Development and use managed sustainably.

Conflict managed, pressures eased

National Marine PlanKey Dates

• Summer 2013 16 week Public Consultation

• December 2013 UK Ministerial Consideration & Approval of Plan for adoption

• Spring 2014 Scottish Ministerial Consideration

• Summer 2014 Scottish Parliamentary consideration

• Autumn 2014 Adoption of Plan

National Marine Plan

• Sets out how we expect marine resources to be utilised in future

• Contains national strategic objectives

• Adopts policies to ensure utilisation undertaken sustainably

• Will guide and direct decision makers and developers

• Will guide planning at a regional level

Aquaculture

Locational Guidance for fish farming

32% increase in finfish80% increase in shellfish

Draft NMP accompanying documents

• Sustainability Appraisal (includes Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats Regulations Assessment)

• Partial BRIA and Equality Impact Statement

• Planning Circular on interactions between

Terrestrial and Marine Planning.

Summer Consultation

• Draft National Marine Plan consultation expected summer 2013

(16 weeks)

• Align with linked consultation process for Marine Protect Areas Network & Marine Renewables Sectoral Plans

• Get Involved:

29 National and Local Public Events Marine Strategy Forum Stakeholder Meetings Online Publications Visit Marine Consultation Webpage (above) Join our distribution list by emailing:

marineconsultation@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/marine-consultation

Summer Consultations:Marine Protected Areas

The Marine Scotland Act 2010 also provides measures for improved marine nature and historic conservation through powers to designate Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to protect and manage areas of importance fro marine wildlife, habitats and historic.

Scientists have also developed a list of Priority Marine Features – key habitats and species within Scotland’s seas which would benefit from site based protection and/or other management measures.

A public consultation on MPA proposals and a list of Priority marine Features will published in summer 2013.

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Draft MPA Network Proposals

Summer Consultations:Sectoral Marine Plans for Offshore Wind, Wave and Tidal

• The sectoral marine plan for offshore wind [Blues Seas Green Energy] is being reviewed and sectoral marine plans are currently being developed for Wave Energy and Tidal Energy in Scottish Waters.

• Sectoral Marine Plans will contain Scottish Ministers policies, including their spatial strategy to steer commercial scale offshore renewable energy development in Scottish Waters.

• The Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters were identified in the Scottish Government’s Strategic Environmental Assessment as areas of high energy resource for wave and tidal power. To aid potential development and to guide development opportunities, draft Regional Locational Guidance and a Marine Spatial Plan Framework for the region have been published.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/marineenergy/wave/rlg/pentlandorkney/mspfinal

Draft Plan Options for Offshore Renewables

Scottish Marine Regions

Regional Marine Planning in Scotland – Where we are

• Provisional plan is to form 2 MPPs a year until we have complete coverage around the Scottish coast.  

• Consultation on the SMR Boundaries closed on 28th February.

• Next step is laying of Order in Scottish Parliament.

• Working with local coastal partnerships to develop Marine Planning Partnerships (MPPs) in a step-wise manner.

• Responsibility for developing Regional Marine Plans will be devolved to MPPs, with the first RMPs being developed from 2014.

Marine Planning interactive (NMPi)

National Marine Plan interactive (NMPi) is being developed to provide a GIS

platform to support the consultation on the draft National Marine Plan.

This includes updating data sets used in Scotland’s Marine Atlas and developing

‘story pages’ which give more information and context to the data. NMPi can be

accessed at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/seamanagement/nmpihome

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Summer Consultation- Join our distribution list at:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/marine-consultation

For further information on Marine Planning contact : Lynsay.Ross@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

Linda RosboroughDirector – Marine Scotland