MASPNose provided facilitation, support and financial means to allow the complex stakeholder process to take place with the aim of developing a plan for the Dogger Bank that integrated fishing with conservation of 3 Natura SACs. Ultimately, the stakeholders decided "to agree to disagree" and delivered a report with two different points of view.
Questions this practice may help answer
- How can we approach cross-border MSP in the North Sea?
- How can MSP and cross-border integrated management issues at the Dogger Bank be supported?
- What is needed to facilitate and enable cross-border MSP?
Implementation Context
MASPNOSE was a preparatory action on Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) in the North Sea. MASPNOSE facilitated two concrete, cross-border MSP case studies on the North Sea: 1) the Belgian-Dutch collaboration on the Thornton Bank in the southern North Sea, and 2) the development of an international fisheries management plan for the Dogger Bank in the central North Sea. This practice report focusses on the latter case study for the Dogger Bank.
The Dogger Bank is area under jurisdiction of the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. The Netherlands, Germany and the UK have allocated their part of the Dogger Bank as an area important for nature (Natura 2000) but at the same time the United Kingdom wants to construct an offshore wind park and it is an important fishing area. The challenge was to develop an international management plan for the area taking into account those constraints.
The focus of this case study was on the process that necessary to lead to a cross border fisheries management plan in relation to nature conservation for all three designated Natura2000 sites.
Aspects / Objectives
- To develop approaches for cross-border fisheries management in the North Sea
- To support the on-going development of planning on the Dogger Bank
- To clarify the challenges and provide recommendations for integrated management on the Dogger Bank.
Method
The Dogger Bank case study comprises an area between the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. The project undertook a series of workshops and extensive engagement with planning authorities and stakeholders to investigate the issues on the Dogger Bank and to develop position papers and outputs on the experience in the case study and the lessons learned.
Main Outputs / Results
Report on-line at: https://www.wageningenur.nl/upload_mm/7/6/2/92fbfd4c-5b01-4e8e-9a82-de8…
Transferability
The report has most relevance to the North Sea, and particularly to Member States with waters bordering the Dogger Bank area, but important lessons can be learned for addressing similar issues across Europe.
Contact PersoN
Dr Saskia Hommes
Researcher / advisor
Governance and Spatial Planning
Delatares
PO Box 85467
3508 Al Utrecht
The Netherlands
+31(0)6 101 998 79
Saskia.hommes
deltares.nl (Saskia[dot]hommes[at]deltares[dot]nl)
Responsible Entity
IMARES Waginengen, Wageningen University, LEI Wageningen UR
Costs / Funding Source
DG MARE