A meeting was initiated by Mr. Spyros Danellis, Member of the European Parliament, and organised jointly by WWF and the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) to present and discuss the major objectives and experiences related to maritime spatial planning and integrated coastal management prior to the first reading of the draft Directive in the Parliament. The meeting took place on 4 September 2013. In addition to the presentation of the experience from the European Atlantic by the University of Liverpool, PAP/RAC supported the adoption of the proposed Directive by presenting the Mediterranean experience with the ICZM Protocol and the implementation of coastal management and marine spatial planning in the region.
The meeting was an excellent opportunity for PAP/RAC to point out the main requirements of this legal instrument and to make links to marine planning. The crucial elements that are relevant for the proposed Directive are the implementation of the ecosystem approach and integrity of marine and land part of the coastal zone; institutional co-ordination; public participation; transboundary co-operation; and instruments of ICZM, such as the National coastal strategies. Consistency with the proposed maritime strategies was underlined so to have a coherent instrument with the coastal ones. Practical projects were presented to illustrate the implementation of these requirements on the ground.
More than 30 participants including EMPs and their assistants, the representatives of DG Mare and DE Environment, as well as a Rapporteur to the Parliament on this Directive expressed lots of interest in lively discussions that followed the presentations.
