Coastal Plan for Šibenik-Knin County Adopted

On 27 April the County Council members adopted the ICZM Plan for the Šibenik-Knin County. Mr. Goran Pauk, President of the County, pointed out that the main reason behind the preparation of the Plan was improvement of the environmental state and securing a healthy environment by, among others, taking into account the climate variability and change. The Plan was presented by Ms Sanja Slavica Matešiæ, Head of the Administrative Department for Environmental Protection and Municipal Affairs. “The Coastal Plan of the Šibenk-Knin County is not a normative plan and is not based on any law. It belongs to the so called indicative plans which provide guidelines on how to manage a given problem, and define solutions which should than be included into normative plans. A great innovative and creative effort was made, and this is the first plan of the kind in Croatia which is, at the same time, a strategic document necessary for attracting EU funds.” – explained Ms Slavica Matešiæ. This is the first Coastal Plan in Croatia, and one of the pioneers in the Mediterranean, that was developed in accordance with the ICZM Protocol, and with a special focus on climate variability and change. The Plan was developed within the GEF ClimVar and ICZM Project and lead by PAP/RAC. Over a period of two and a half years, a number of meetings, workshops and direct contacts with local stakeholders were organised in order to secure as wide as possible participatory approach, to secure that local knowledge, desires and solutions were embraced, as well as to raise awareness of the threats posed by climate variability and change, the effects of which are already felt in the area. One of the greatest qualities of this process was a deep involvement of numerous regional institutions, in particular those responsible for environmental affairs, spatial and regional development. This is the best guarantee for its successful implementation that should lead to improved resilience of the coast and its sustainable development.