From strategic marine planning to project licences – Striking a balance between predictability and adaptability in the management of aquaculture and offshore wind farms

Abstract

Renewable energy and sustainable food production are high on the international agenda, as is the prospect of increasing activity northwards to Arctic waters. In this article, we review core elements of the marine governance systems for aquaculture facilities and offshore wind farms in Norway and Scotland. Management of these sectors through strategic planning, marine spatial planning and licensing systems furthers rule of law values such as stability and predictability, making investment less risky. The review illustrates how the governance systems also facilitates flexibility and adaptability, balancing predictability considerations against the need to adapt management to natural and economic changes and innovative technologies, or even effective multi-use. This article discusses how endeavours have been made to strike a balance between predictability and adaptability in these sectors in Norway and Scotland. The study of marine management regimes in the Arctic and northern parts of the Temperate Northern Atlantic, and the values underpinning these regimes, thus provides lessons for the future of the Arctic.

Sustainability conflicts in the blue economy: planning for offshore aquaculture and offshore wind energy development in Norway

“…New power-demanding industries, such as battery production, will also require more electricity. Other drivers of offshore wind developments include conflicts around wind energy development on land (Schütz & Slater, 2019) and the expected competitive advantage with regard to technology development building on decades of experience in the petroleum sector, specifically for floating wind (Winje et al, 2020). The first floating wind demonstration project in Norway, Hywind Tampen, started production late 2022 4 .…”

A Bibliometric Analysis of Marine Spatial Planning Research Using Vosviewer

“…MSP can best be defined as the "public process of analysing and allocating the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities in marine areas to achieve ecological, economic, and social objectives that are usually specified through a political process" (Ehler and Douvere, 2009). Nowadays, MSP is increasingly perceived as a mechanism capable of mitigating investment risks (Schütz and Slater, 2019). It involves the adoption of ecological and socioeconomic strategies to sustain coral reefs.…”

Gone with the Wind? Wind Farm-Induced Wakes and Regulatory Gaps

“…Marine spatial planning can perhaps act as a catalyst towards offshore wind cooperation in circumstances of wind theft. Marine spatial planning is a process, practically resulting in a plan or map in a larger marine area in the marine waters falling under the jurisdiction of a coastal State, which facilitates coordination and facilitation of different offshore activities which may or may not include offshore wind exploitation [65,66]. At the regional level, cooperation through coordinated marine spatial planning is encouraged by the OSPAR Commission of the Marine Environment in the North-East Atlantic.…”