Harnessing Our Ocean Wealth is an Integrated Marine Plan (IMP), setting out a roadmap for the Government’s vision, high-level goals and integrated actions across policy, governance and business to enable our marine potential to be realised. Implementation of this Plan will see Ireland evolve an integrated system of policy and programme planning for our marine affairs. Implementation of the Plan will, of course, have to be delivered within the over-riding medium-term fiscal framework and budgetary targets adopted by the Government. The IMP provides a new momentum for growth in the marine area and seeks to ensure government departments work together more efficiently and effectively on the diverse issues related to the marine. The IMP marks a key milestone, with recognition by Government that integrated planning and actions become the norm for marine and maritime affairs. The IMP is designed to make a valuable contribution to getting the environment right for investment and so stimulate essential private investment. The IMP will help realise the potential of our marine economy and will allow us to strike a balance between protecting our marine environment (and its species and habitats) and maximising the use of its resources as a source of economic growth. The ocean wealth will be a key element of our economic recovery and sustainable growth, generating benefits for all our citizens, supported by coherent policy, planning and regulation, and managed in an integrated manner. Three high-level goals, of equal importance, based on the concept of sustainable development have been developed. Goal 1 focuses on a thriving maritime economy, whereby Ireland harnesses the market opportunities to achieve economic recovery and socially inclusive, sustainable growth. Goal 2 sets out to achieve healthy ecosystems that provide monetary and non-monetary goods and services (e.g. food, climate, health and well-being). Goal 3 aims to increase our engagement with the sea. Building on our rich maritime heritage, our goal is to strengthen our maritime identity and increase our awareness of the value (market and non-market), opportunities and social benefits of engaging with the sea. The vision and goals have been framed within the context of what is happening at the broader global and EU levels, particularly the Integrated Maritime Policy for the European Union, recognising the contribution the ‘blue economy’ can make to global economic growth and the need for appropriate policies, strategies and funding mechanisms to enable this. To support the vision and goals, eight enablers that are key to creating the conditions for growth and investment have been identified. These enablers are: 1.Governance; 2.Maritime Safety, Security & Surveillance; 3.Clean – Green – Marine; 4.Business Development, Marketing & Promotion; 5.Research, Knowledge, Technology & Innovation; 6.Capacity, Education, Training & Awareness; 7.Infrastructure; and 8.International & North/South Cooperation. Enablers not prioritised in order of importance and display strong inter-dependencies and synergies. In total, 39 actions have been identified under these eight enablers. Each action is linked to the appropriate goal. The ocean wealth plays a key role in regional and rural development. Our marine resources support livelihoods in rural coastal and Gaeltacht areas where often few other employment or income sources exist. Traditionally, this has included commercial activities associated with, for example, fishing, aquaculture and seaweed harvesting. Looking to the future, there is a real opportunity for regions and rural coastal communities to harness our ocean wealth. This will create much needed employment opportunities, generating growth and jobs in the regions through both established sectors such as seafood and tourism and emerging areas such as marine renewable energy and associated services. Ten Guiding Principles for an Effective Integrated Marine Plan2 1. Inclusive stakeholder participation 2. High-level government leadership with clear accountability 3. A policy and legal framework that provides clear direction 4. Comprehensive goals with measurable targets 5. Effective strategies for achieving goals and targets 6. Regular progress monitoring and evaluation 7. Adaptive management to access relationships between management actions and outcomes and modify plans as required 8. Adequate scientific information 9. Adaptive plans to take account of the unique characteristics of the context 10. Integration of spatial, jurisdictional and sectoral dimensions
Ирландия · 2012-07-01