The "open ocean" has become a highly contested space as coastal populations and maritime uses soared in abundance and intensity over the last decades. Changing marine utilization patterns represent a considerable challenge to society and governments. Maritime spatial planning has emerged as one tool to manage conflicts between users and achieve societal goals for the use of marine space; however, singlesector management approaches are too often still the norm. The last decades have seen the rise of a new ocean use concept: the joint "multi-use" of ocean space. This paper aims to explain and refine the concept of ocean multi-use of space by reviewing the development and state of the art of multi-use in Europe and presenting a clear definition and a comprehensive typology for existing multi-use combinations. It builds on the connectivity of uses and users in spatial, temporal, provisional, and functional dimensions as the underlying key characteristic of multi-use dimensions. Combinations of these dimensions yield four distinct types of multi-use with little overlap between them. The diversity of types demonstrates that there is no one-size-fitsall management approach, but rather that adaptive management plans are needed, focusing on achieving the highest societal benefit while minimizing conflicts. This work will help to sharpen, refine and advance the public and academic discourse over marine spatial planning by offering a common framework to planners, researchers and users alike, when discussing multi-use and its management implications.
Commercial fisheries and oil and gas extraction are both spatially extensive industries in the North Sea (NS), and inevitably there is physical interaction where the two activities coincide. Regular contact between fishing gear and pipelines may risk pipeline integrity and could lead to gear snagging. It is also known, anecdotally, that some vessels target pipelines, potentially benefiting from local artificial reef effects. The impacts of pipeline decommissioning options (removal vs. in situ) on commercial fisheries must be evaluated as part of the consenting process, but the degree of interaction between the two is presently unknown in the NS. Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) data for the Scottish demersal fleet were analysed with spatial data on pipelines. Approximately one-third (36.1%) of trips fished within 200 m of a pipeline over a 5-year period, suggesting that pipelines are subjected to regular interaction with fishing gear. The fishing effort (in hours) associated with pipelines was 2.52% of the total effort, compared to 1.33% in an equivalent area of seabed 1 km away, implying modest aggregation of fishing around pipelines. Only a small percentage (0.93%) of fishing trips actively targeted pipelines as fishing grounds. The highest level of fishing around pipelines occurred in the northeast NS. Pipeline sections with >100 h of fishing were typically larger diameter pipelines. The results suggest that pipeline decommissioning may have both negative (displacement of aggregated effort) and positive (reduced snagging potential) outcomes for commercial fisheries. It is recommended that where there is little or no fishing activity associated with pipelines, receptors other than fishing should be prioritized when selecting decommissioning strategies. Additionally, the intensity of fishing around pipelines should be used to inform the frequency of post-decommissioning integrity monitoring for any pipelines left in situ.
The concept of multi-use of the sea has gained popularity in recent years as a result of ocean space (coastal areas and regions with relatively small sea space in particular) becoming increasingly crowded due to the development of the maritime economy. Competing claims for space can be a source of conflict, however this may also lead to mutual benefits for different users when sustainable combinations are sought. Despite increasing European-wide efforts, on-the-ground knowledge and practice of multi-use are still limited. Therefore, with the aim of investigating opportunities for multi-use development in the European seas, 10 case studies were selected, involving different site-specific contexts. This study analyses the characteristics and development potential for ocean multi-use, integrating results from desk analysis and stakeholder perceptions from different sectors in each of the case study locations. Similarities and differences between various combinations of sea uses are also identified. The results show a high heterogeneity of multi-use opportunities between case studies, with a range of combinations identified. The investigated combinations of maritime uses share an overall balance between factors promoting (drivers) and hindering (barriers) multi-use development. Based on stakeholder opinions, expected benefits (added values) of multi-use implementation outweigh potential negative impacts. Management actions are also proposed to further exploit multi-use potential at a local, regional (sub-national) and national levels.
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