Fair Isle Marine Spatial Plan –

 

The main involvement of FIMETI’s current Working Group is in the preparation of a Fair Isle Marine Spatial Plan (MSP). This Plan is being prepared in partnership with the Scottish Sustainable Marine Environment Initiative and will be the first of its kind in Scotland.

 

 

 

Aim of the Fair Isle Marine Spatial Plan -

 

To ensure that the marine and coastal environment of Fair Isle is sustainable.*

 

*Sustainable use will enable dynamic economic activity supporting a prosperous community whilst maintaining and enhancing marine wildlife, habitats and ecosystems. Sustainable use should not lead to loss of biodiversity or ecological balance, or reduce the availability of natural resources for future generations.

 

Marine Spatial Planning Defined

 

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has suggested a definition of a marine spatial plan as "a strategic plan for regulating, managing and protecting the marine environment that addresses the multiple, cumulative and potentially conflicting uses of the sea."

 

The above definition appears to assume that marine spatial "planning" will include the "management" of ongoing uses or activities. However, other papers that address the potential scope of marine spatial planning prefer to express the scope as "marine spatial planning and management" (Birdlife International 2003).

 

The definition and scope of marine spatial planning was further explored in a CoastNet conference in October 2003 and its proceedings will be widely disseminated. The Scottish Coastal Forum (SCF) has defined the purpose of marine spatial planning as "two fold: (a) to secure sustainable and integrated development which balances and, where appropriate advances, economic, social and environmental objectives, and considers the implications of the ecosystem approach; and (b) to allocate space in inshore waters in a rational manner which minimises conflicts of interest and maximises synergistic relations."

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