Research project Cooperation Governance for Next-Level Maritime Spatial Planning in the North Sea

General introduction

The NORSAIC project improves cooperation in the field of marine spatial planning (MRP) in the North Sea region. The aim is to keep the region vibrant, healthy and sustainable, particularly in the light of climate change. This area is one of the busiest seas in terms of transport and maritime activities, but at the same time the North Sea is an important asset for the environment. Well-coordinated MRPs within Europe should help to preserve marine biodiversity and to make optimal use of its economic potential.

Research approach

To achieve this, NORSAIC identifies three goals: a) to adapt and promote crucial MRP elements, b) to build innovation capacity and c) to facilitate joint collaboration. In concrete, NORSAIC will provide a number of building blocks, tools and knowledge exchange for a more integrated, regional MRP approach for the North Sea. ILVO's task is to draw more attention to spatial planning linked to fishing activities (e.g. essential fishing grounds) in the current MSP processes of the surrounding EU Member States.

Relevance/Valorization

The transparency and cooperation envisaged by NORSAIC bring more structured steps to the existing MRP policy framework. The ambition is to achieve a healthy balance between a robust ecosystem and the exploitation of ecosystem services, such as food exploitation (e.g. fishing), energy production (e.g. wind turbines) and other maritime activities (e.g. shipping).