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Abstract
Maritime spatial planning (MSP) is increasingly being introduced as a tool to improve decision-making for those maritime areas where competing human activities occur and to manage the effects on the marine environment. According to the European Commission's Roadmap for Maritime Spatial Planning: Achieving Common Principles in the EU of November 2008, for MSP to be effective, it should be established by setting up a legally binding framework. Recently, several European Union (EU) Member States have developed systems to establish a firm national legal basis to engage in MSP in all maritime waters within their national jurisdiction. However, their starting points are different; whereas, the Netherlands and Germany extended their existing territorial spatial planning framework seaward, the UK developed an entire new planning system specific for its maritime waters. This article aims to explore how the EU Member States mentioned above have embedded their maritime spatial planning activities in their national legal system and to what extent they are bound by global and EU-legislation when engaging in MSP. Special attention is paid to issues of cross-sectoral coordination and cross-border consultation with neighbouring States.
Acknowledgements
The author is grateful for comments received by G. Ellis, A.G. Oude Elferink and the peer reviewers on earlier versions of this paper. The content of this paper remains the sole responsibility of its author
Notes
This approach has been underlined as being of crucial importance to MSP in the 2008 Roadmap for Maritime Spatial Planning, the 2006 Green Paper on a Future Maritime Policy for the EU and the 2007 Blue Book and Action Plan on An Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU.
OSPAR is the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic, to which the Netherlands, Germany and the UK are Parties. HELCOM is the governing body of the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area.
Since only the northeastern coastline of Germany borders the convention area of HELCOM, this latter convention will not be discussed in this paper.
Adopted on 10 December 1982; entry into force on 16 November 1994.
Although important in the context of MSP because of the linkage with terrestrial planning, and often referred to in the context of integrated coastal zone management, the coastal zone, which usually includes the coastal ocean as well as the portion of the land adjacent to the coast that influences coastal waters, will only be addressed with regard to the territorial sea. The internal waters (which include the Wadden Sea) fall outside the scope of this paper, as well as the high seas.
This may even include the use of air space.
Moreover, EU legislation is applicable in areas beyond national jurisdiction to the extent that it applies to activities by nationals of EU Member States, such as fisheries and shipping.
Commission v UK, Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber), 20 October 2005. Available at http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:62004CJ0006:EN:HTML.
More policy oriented topics such as the European Spatial Development Perspective and Trans-European Networks remain outside the scope of this paper as well as legislation (proposals) which imply a limited role for maritime spatial planning such as Carbon Capture and Storage, the Water Framework Directive and the Floods Directive.
The Council Regulation is currently under revision. The proposal (COM/2011/425) is under discussion in the European Parliament and the Council and will enter into force in 2013.
In February 2008, the Voordelta area was designated as a SAC.
The marine regions which must be taken into account when implementing the MSFD include the Baltic Sea, North-East Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. According to Article 4(2) MSFD, Member States may define regional sub-divisions as long as they take account of certain marine sub-regions.
And several States have (historic) fishing rights. The access for fisheries in the coastal waters of other EU Member States is regulated in the Regulation on the CFP.
The Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context was adopted in 1991 in the Finnish city Espoo and entered into force in September 1997.
In the EU, the ‘Council Directive on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment’ was adopted in 1985 and amended in 1997. EU Member States had to transpose the amended EIA Directive by March 1999 at the latest.
The definition in Article 2(4) seems to include States, as being legal persons of public law.
Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters. Adopted in June 1998 and entered into force in October 2001.
The IBN 2015 has the status of a policy rule derived from the ‘North Sea paragraph’ in the National Spatial Strategy. As such, it requires the national government to act according to the IBN 2015 when regulating maritime activities under a permit system. The revised IBN 2015, to be expected in November 2011, will have the status of a policy rule derived from the ‘North Sea chapter’ in the National Water Plan and the accompanying Policy Document on the North Sea 2009–2015.
The EEZ was established by the Netherlands in 2000.
These States are not mentioned by name.
Paragraph 17(3), ROG 2008; Paragraph 18a(2), ROG 2006.
In March 2010 the UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly Government and Northern Ireland Executive launched a discussion paper for the pre-consultation on the draft UK Marine Policy Statement, followed by a formal consultation between July and October 2010 and the publication of its final version on 18 March 2011. See http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2011/03/18/marine-policy-statement/.
To be distinguished from the other types in the UK: SACs for habitats of European importance and the Special Areas for seabirds of European importance.