What’s the issue?
Ireland is fortunate to have one of the largest maritime areas of EU Member States, forming an area more than ten times the area of the island.
Within this space we must ensure biodiversity can be protected and thrive in clean and healthy waters, alongside human use of the space, including offshore renewable energy, recreation and food production. There are numerous government policies, EU directives, international commitments and national legislation that aim to effectively manage Ireland’s marine environment in a sustainable way. However, to date, none of these instruments are leading to the desired outcomes of healthy, productive and resilient seas.
In 2021, Ireland’s marine planning system was overhauled through the establishment of a new framework guided by the National Marine Planning Framework (NMPF) (Ireland’s first Maritime Spatial Plan) and supporting legislation (The Maritime Area Planning Act 2021).
The new planning system establishes an overarching policy framework and new consent regime for the maritime area. However, the plan and supporting legislation has been heavily criticised by e-NGOs for failing to implement specific articles and objectives of the EU Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) Directive.
In terms of marine protection, Ireland has only designated barely 9% of our vast maritime area as Marine Protected Areas, in the form of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs). The level of meaningful protection is even less than this, given the absence of management plans for these protected sites, which may be protected on paper only. There is also no legal mechanism for implementing protected sites beyond our territorial waters, meaning that many habitats and species are left without any form of legal protection.
Ireland is also failing to meet a number of indicators for healthy seas through the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). The most recent assessment of Good Environmental Status (GES) found that only six out of 11 descriptors were meeting criteria for GES. SWAN voiced concerns about many of the results and data deficiency, with many criteria unable to be assessed.
The lack of an effective marine spatial plan, low levels of effective marine protection and lack of data to properly determine the health of Ireland’s seas all have an impact on the entire marine management system. Effective management, strategic planning and a true assessment of the carrying capacity of the system are required as Ireland’s marine area comes under increasing pressure from climate change and anthropogenic use.
What needs to change?
It is vital that Ireland introduces interim protections to protect sensitive areas that may be required in our future MPA network.
Additionally, all existing protected sites (SACs and SPAs) must have management plans implemented as a matter of urgency.
Ireland must prioritise the establishment of bespoke MPA legislation if our target for achieving 10% marine protection as soon as possible and 30% protection by 2030 are to be realised, including at least 10% of our marine are under strict protection.
There is a need for the NMPF to be reviewed as soon as possible so that existing gaps (including the lack of spatial and temporal data) can be addressed.
The level of ambition within Ireland’s MSFD must be increased and adequately resourced. Furthermore, an effective monitoring programme and holistic suite of measures to address the identified pressures must be implemented.
Read More:
SWAN Response to 3rd River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) Consultation