The challenge for any new legislation is to rejuvenate the coast, protect the seas and coastal habitats and ensure that coastal communities can see the benefits and support the changes says Dr. Andy Johnston as he discusses the new Marine Bill.
Mass urbanisation coupled with easy access to Europe by train and plane means that it is easy to forget we are an island with a large coastline and a deep historical connection to the sea. The honourable exception to this ignorance of the sea in our popular culture is the BBC’s programme ‘Coast’ but am I the only person who’s noticed that the programme dwells on the past? Forts, wrecks and fading seaside towns.
Whether intentional or not, the recently published Draft Marine Bill could herald a renaissance on our coastline as government eventually tries to grapple with the challenges of marine habitat protection, fishing, offshore energy and access to the shore for recreation.
At the heart of the bill is a new Marine Policy Statement and the most notable new initiative is the creation of the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). The MMO will have responsibility for spatial planning and licensing activities on the coast, in ports and inshore seas out to 12 miles. The MMO will also work closely with Natural England to designate new Marine Conservation Zones. Given that these areas are either not managed at all or sometimes are by multiple fractious groups, then this is a welcome step forward. We will have a new body that will knock heads together and take the tough decisions. Furthermore, if any users of the marine environment step out of line, new marine enforcement officers will be on hand to dispense fines.
The MMO will become the main licensing authority. It will take over the flood risk and land drainage responsibilities of the Environment Agency if they are mainly marine in nature and it will become the main point of contact for harbour developers and dredgers. The MMO will become the planning authority for the marine environment in England. Elsewhere it will be the Welsh Assembly Government and the Northern Ireland Assembly. The plans will be developed by planning teams led by project boards. Sensibly, it’s expected that the planning teams will include town planners, though whether these are locally based or are national consultants is unclear.
The new Marine Conservation Zones will not be isolated cases, there could be up to 85 of them forming a chain of protected areas around the whole coast. In some of them commercial activity will be allowed and in other more sensitive areas there will be a complete ban.
So far so good, but some of the powers of the MMO used to belong to local authorities and the new marine spatial plans will emanate from Whitehall via the Marine Policy Statement so there is a loss of local democratic accountability. There are some good reasons for this; local government is sometimes slow and inconsistent when managing coastal resources and the MMO will not have the staff numbers to liaise with every local authority individually. However, local communities should not be cut out of marine management.
Now is the time for strategic alliances of local authorities to provide expertise (there are no marine spatial planners out there) and a voice for communities. Crucially, the MMO has no economic development remit so a positive dialogue focused on simultaneously optimising economic opportunity while protecting the marine environment will be important. For example the MMO will decide where the offshore wind farms will go but the local authority will be responsible for finding suitable sites for the land based facilities and making the most of the opportunities provided.
There is one group that relies directly upon the coast and seas for a living - fishermen. The draft bill will end Sea Fisheries Committees and replace them with Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCAs). As the name suggests there is a new balance between fishing and conservation. The good news is that local authorities will have a central role filling up to one third of an IFCA’s Board; the bad news is that local authorities will be expected to fully fund the new IFCAs. Government will provide financial help but only for new duties and with Defra there is always the fear that an emergency such as foot and mouth will empty their coffers and restrict any new commitments.
The final piece of the jigsaw is opening up the coastline to the public. The draft bill proposes a new English coastal route. There will be places where access to the coast is impossible like Ministry of Defence, land but the principle is open access and not just to a path but also to complementary zones for recreation. This is a coast that not only will be walked on but also played on. The term the bill uses for these recreation areas is ‘spreading room’ indicating that this will be a dynamic process. It’s clear to all that erosion will affect any plans for coastal access so the route has to be flexible, there should be provision for ‘roll back’ of paths, which means they can be moved inland. Natural England are leading the establishment of the route and will work closely with County Councils on the route and access to it. In fact it is envisaged that Natural England officers will be placed in council offices to help facilitate the process.
The challenge for any new legislation is to rejuvenate the coast, protect the seas and coastal habitats and ensure that coastal communities can see the benefits and support the changes. For all that to be achieved, local authorities will need to take an active part in the process. The opportunities for direct impact are few and so councils must organise and collaborate to work with the MMO, the IFCAs, Natural England and the Environment Agency.
