Maritime
Spatial Planning (MSP) is a fundamental tool for the development of a
Sustainable Blue Economy. It allows us to manage the use of our seas and oceans
in a long term, inclusive and innovative way, to reduce conflicts between
sectors, create synergies between human activities and ensure they take place
in an efficient and safe way, within the capacity of the receiving ecosystems.
There are
also other benefits to MSP, as it puts the seas and oceans on the political
agenda and helps to raise stakeholder awareness of important maritime issues.
In addition, there are indirect benefits such as flowing from systematic data
and information collection and stakeholder processes, among others.
What is
next?
The next
generation of EU MSPs will have a key role in four aspects:
- Becoming ‘Climate-Smart’, in line with the European Green Deal.
- Increasing offshore wind capacity in Europe to at least 60GW by 2030.
- Establishing protected areas on 30% and restore at least 20% of the EU’s sea areas.
- Identifying optimal sites for seaweed farming and multi-use.